A galaxy at war
by MrTubbyLad
Summary: A story set during the reaper war, based loosely off the multiplayer, All original characters. Follows a group of characters throughout the reaper war, from a week before to the end.
1. Chapter 1

A galaxy at war

Chapter 1: Rakka

1 week pre-Reaper war

It was hot on Thessia. It was usually hot or at least warm but this was hotter than usual. Didn't faze the Drell too much, the drier the better as far as he was concerned. He scanned the area looking for the target.

''C'mon c'mon, where are you… aha!'', he exclaimed, as he saw his target. An Asari was making a speech, addressing a large crowd in a park across the road. Her death was going to him a very rich Drell.

''Right Rakka'', he said to himself, ''let's get to it''.

He made his way across to the crowd, analysing his surrounding as he went looking for threats, or an exit. On either side of the park, skyscrapers towered on either side. Despite the fact that he had been here multiple times, the architecture of the Asari never ceased to amaze him. Rakka shook his head. Back on topic. Several armed guards surrounded the politician, but they didn't fool him. Meetings like this, where there's one guard there's ten cops on standby. The crowd was surprisingly large for an ''unofficial'' meeting, with numbers he could estimate was round-about a hundred, more or less. The crowd was predominantly Asari, but there was numerous Turians among the crowd, with the odd Salarian dotting the crowd. No Drell though. Rakka sighed in exasperation. Drell usually accompanied powerful Hanar, and powerful Hanar rarely went to the same place as their own assassins. This wouldn't help his escape, sticking out like a saw thumb. It was going to be a run-type escape. On Thessia. After assassinating a politician. This should be fun.

The politician was on a podium on a stand. A forward assault would be good, except by the time he jumped up on the stand, security would probably gun him down. The assault rifles they were holding didn't look like they were ushering arrests, and he doubted his barriers would hold out until he got there. Around the back it was. He left the park silently, any hint he was going round the back and this would get messy. Hopefully things would go smoothly.

Things did not go smoothly. After walking for what he guessed to be half an hour, he reached the back entrance to the park. It was blocked by a wall; about 9 feet tall give or take. He considered turning back and jumping the fence around the rest of the fence, but he was pretty sure he saw alarms connected. As he thought about it, something caught his eye. A door! Probably connected directly to the park as well. Avoiding the alarms, get to the target… perfect! Only one problem stood in his was. Two Asari guards stood either side, holding avenger assault rifles. Only one thing for it.

He boldly strolled up to the guards.

''Hello!'' he said cheerfully as he walked up to them, ''Just popping through.''

One of the guards roughly pushed him back. ''Members of the public are not allowed through here.''

''What if I say please?'' Rakka said as he headed back towards the guards . As he reached for the door handle the second guard knocked his hand away with the butt of her gun, ''Are you deaf? No one allowed!''. Rakka looked her right in the eye with a smile that didn't quite reach his eyes. ''Two things. 1: Don't try and hit me. 2: You're going to want to let me through before I count from 10 starting now, 10''.

The first Asari walked towards him and looked him dead in the face, ''Are you threatening us?'' Rakka seemed to think for a bit. ''Pretty much yeah. 7.'' The second Asari readied her rifle. ''We don't like being threatened…'' She let her threat hang. Rakka sighed. ''I don't enjoy counting from 10. So you won't let me pass?''

Both Asari shook their heads in union. Rakka sighed again ''so be it''

Before either Asari could react he jab the first Asari in the throat, leaving her gasping for air, before lifting his leg and bring it down on her skull. The Asari crumpled to the ground unconscious. By this time the second Asari had aimed her gun. Before she could pull the trigger, Rakka unleashed a powerful biotic throw in her direction. Before she could counter she was thrown again against the wall, unconscious and bleeding. Rakka did a quick analyst of their wounds. The first one would be fine, but the second one was bleeding quite badly. He looked around the room, before resting his eyes on an emergency first aid kit. Opening it, he spotted a stash of medi-gel. He broke the seal, and let the gooey salve land on the Asari's head before rubbing it in. Without further ado he went through the door.

As he suspected it lead to the park and straight to the stand. He picked up a quick jog, not wanting to waste time. As he finally arrived at the stand he noticed several guards that had not been there on his walk past. He laid down trying to blend in with the grass, but his black coat didn't help. He observed the guards for a while. They seemed to be trying to use a radio transmitter, but to no reply. One of them, the leader he presumed, barked a few orders, and the guards jogged off in the direction Rakka had come from. As soon as they were dots in the distance, he bolted towards the stage. He wondered why they had left, then it clicked: the guards he knocked out might've had to report in. he had to snap himself out of thought. He had almost run into the stage.

''Concentrate, fool. How did I ever become an assassin?'' he muttered. He was backstage looking at the target. He ran multiple thoughts on how to kill her without getting killed. Just as he picked one, a sharp voice sounded in his ear: ''who are you?''

A short Asari was glaring daggers at him. ''I can't see you on the list.''

Rakka faulted. This was unexpected.

''Well?'' the Asari demanded. Rakka breathed deeply ready for what was to come. ''Well… ah sod it''

He ran around the Asari, onto the front of the stand where the target was wrapping up her speech. Without slowing, he jumped. As he passed over her he placed a hand on either side of her face, and using her own weight and momentum against her, snapped her neck. As both he and her corpse landed on the crowd, he rolled, and before the guards could react, ran. He had barely reached the edge of the park before sirens arrived. He knew they'd been waiting for him. A car landed in front of him, and two commandos leapt out.

Rakka shook his head in disbelief. Commandos already? That must've been some politician he killed. As the commandos built up a biotic strike, he ran past; put his right hand on the right Asari's head, before smacking it into the other commandos head. Both collapsed. But he knew that was just the start. Several more cars had landed, each carrying multiple cops. This would not end well. So Rakka did the only logical thing.

He ran into a skyscraper.

Pushing past various people, occasionally muttering ''excuse me'' or ''sorry'', before jumping into a lift and pressing the roof button, just as the police burst in the building. As the lift door shut, he gave them a smile and a wave before waiting for the lift to go up. As it went, Rakka shut his eyes.

A few floors later it stopped. Rakka opened his eyes. It was dark. ''Ah, they've learned to cut the power. Huh.''

Feeling the lifts roof he gave it a push. It moved. ''Good good good'' he said to no one in particular. Climbing out he looked up. Thankfully the lift had stopped near the top. Gripping the elevator wire he pulled himself up.

Several minutes later he was at the top. The door was shut and whatever he did would have to do fast. His muscles were screaming in protest. He threw his biotics at the door before ripping them right out of their hinges, before jumping, partially bioticaly propelling himself. As he landed he tried to put his hands out to roll the impact off, but his muscles were in no shape to respond, causing him to land face down on the ground. A few drops of blood fell out before stopping. As he got up he heard footsteps pounding up the stairs. The police had caught up during his little climb. He ran to the stairs, climbing the final flight before arriving on the roof.

''Why did I come here' He shouted aloud.

It was true; he was trapped, nowhere left except a stair full of cops or a long fall down. What's a Drell to do?

Thankfully the cops made his mind for him. They stormed out the stairwell, surrounding him between the fall and 40 or so cops. The cops surrounding him had their weapons aimed. One of the police, the leader, Rakka guessed from the markings on her uniforms sleeve.

''Get down on the floor,'' The leader bellowed ''you are surrounded!''

''I went on the floor a few minutes ago, you should've caught me then,'' Rakka retorted backing towards the edge.

'Don't give me your crap, you're under arrest, get away from the edge, you have nowhere to go.'' The leader demanded.

''They've told me that before,'' Rakka muttered before looking over the edge. He was about 360 feet up, with lots of traffic between him and the ground.

''Wish me luck'' he said, spreading his arms and falling backwards off the building.

Almost instantly he regretted it. He had one shot to do this and if he failed, they wouldn't need police, they'd need a street cleaner. There was no way to time this at this speed. It was pure luck. He closed his eyes and biotically enveloped himself. As suspected, his current momentum pushed him out of his field, but it did slow him. So when he landed on the sky car, only a few ribs broke. He ignored the pain and forced the door open, adding biotics to his exhausted arms before sliding in. The Asari next to him was screaming and trying to get together a biotic attack. He was in no mood for it.

He reached over and gripped her throat just above the collarbone and applied pressure. Instantly her biotics died. ''Unless you want to die,'' He growled, ''Go to the nearest port''.

Unsurprisingly she complied.

About 5 minutes later a humming appeared near them. Looking out the window Rakka cursed. A gunship had arrived and was hovering above them. A side door opened and a figure jumped out and pulled open the door, pulling the Asari onto the roof before helping them onto the gunship.

''Impressive'' Rakka thought. ''Standing on a moving car helping an untrained civilian onto a moving gunship. Pretty amazing.''

Then he remembered no one was driving. He cursed and slid along into the driver's seat, but before he could do anything, the figures fist glowed blue and smashed the cars roof. Instantly various alarms sounded on the car and it began to veer out of control.

''no no nonoNONONO!'' Rakka yelled trying to wrestle it back into control before looking up.

''Ah fu-''

His sentence was cut short as the car slammed into the side of a building, tumbled out of control and all went black.


	2. Chapter 2

Author's notes: You know, there's probably a really official way to do this, but shut up I'm an idiot. I should probably disclaim this I don't own mass effect blah de blah, but I'm pretty sure Bioware know I don't own it, I know I don't own it. I meant to do this last chapter but sod it I'm just going to make a really long authors note and get it all out the way in one go. In this FF I'll give out options for you to vote on certain choices or character fates. I'm avoiding Characters from the game such as squad mates. This is because I've read too many FF where I've seen my favourite characters demeaned for what of a better word. Be as honest as you want in the comments. Constructive criticism only. Now without further ado… on with the story!

Chapter 2

Rakka

**4 days pre-Reaper war**

Drowsiness. Vision was blurry and his head weighed a million pounds. Rakka's thoughts were scattered and dull, but he could piece together few thoughts. He'd been knocked out before. This wasn't it. He was being drugged. He tried to move but his ribs moaned in protest. Rakka did a quick analyst of his body. He wasn't in too much pain, and his ribs were doing better than expected. Someone had applied medi-gel. He didn't know who had done it or why, but he was grateful. To his left, he heard people talking, but it seemed a million miles away.

''Dammit, his waking up!''

''I thought you had already applied more than advised?''

''I did! But it's like, I don't know, he had built up immunity or something, I don't know!''

''Well fix it then''. The voice seemed to carry some authority, as soon as it was said, Rakka heard tapping and felt a sharp pain in his neck as a needle was injected. His last sight was a blurred vision of an Asari looking over him.

**3 days pre-Reaper war**

''Wake up''

That demanding voice from the ship again. Groaning, Rakka lifting his head. It felt like daggers were being forced into his brain. He tried to move his hands to massage his temples, he found that his hands were bound and he was attached to a chair. As his vision realigned, he looked up. An Asari in full combat armour was scowling at him on the other side of a pane of glass.

''Well. The last time I was tied up in front of an Asari it was followed by a lot of drinks. What about you?''

The Asari's scowl didn't change.

Rakka sighed. He made a mental note that he sighed a lot. He might want to get that checked out. He returned to his talking.

''Well you're not one for small talk. Let's get straight to the point. 1: Who are you? 2: How am I here? And 3: Where is here? I'd prefer you answer in that order.''

The Asari's face moved. Rakka guessed the equivalent was raising an eyebrow.

''And why should I tell you?''

Rakka decided to try the threatening approach.

''It'll be a lot easier than me beating it out of you.''

To this the Asari smirked.

''Your hands are magnetically bound with enough strength to stop a battlemaster. You've no chance.''

Rakka gritted his teeth in frustration.

''Fine. Please may you answer my questions now?''

The Asari thought about it for a second before replying…

''I'm Mati T'Dena. Council spectre and the one who caught you, Rakka.''

This made Rakka think.

''You know who I am?''

''We ran some DNA searches from some of your blood outside of the lift on Thessia. I'll admit you're thorough. I've been looking for you for ages, it was by pure luck that I managed to get into the Hanar databases and cross reference your DNA.''

Rakka growled.

''I was sloppy. If I'd been thorough, I'd have cleaned up the blood and made a runner. Were you there by chance?''

The Asari smirk grew, evidently smug about her victory.

''Actually, no. I was tracking a gang selling corrupted eezo on Thessia when I overheard the police radio. I commandeered a vehicle to your location and damaged your car. Thankfully the building wasn't too damaged. You've been kept unconscious for 4 days while we did DNA checks and decided what to do with you. Keeping up? I'm sure the drugs haven't quite worn off.''

Rakka glared at her.

''I'm fine thank you. I was just amazed that you spectres think of gunships as just vehicles. But of course I'm sure that you have so many more privileges than simple assassins like me.''

''I wouldn't call yourself a 'simple assassin'. You're much better than that, one of the Hanar's best so I believe.''

''Call me what you want. Where am I? A space station isn't it?''

''How did you know?''

''The ceilings got stripes on, just in case the artificial gravity fails.''

''Very good. Yes we are in a space station, a prison if you were wondering.''

Rakka did some quick thinking in his head before asking..

''Are we in the Castellus system by any chance?''

The Asari looked taken aback by this. Confusion on her face she replied

''Yes. How did you know?''

''An assassin of my ill repute? You're going to want to put me in the safest place you guys can think of. Am I right in thinking this is Khaled Oul?''

At this the Asari face settled on suspicion.

''How do you know this and what do you know?''

''Rumours mostly. An Asari funded and supplied prison, protected by the Turians and always moving around their system. Khaled Oul is Turian for 'No hope'. The worst of the worst are left here, the ones who the council think death is too good for. How much of that is right?''

The Asari had returned to her default scowl.

''All of what you said is. Do you know what it's like here?''

''Not a clue''

''Well you're going to find out soon enough when we put you in the feeding ground.''

''Feeding ground? What kind of name is that? Actually, rephrase. What is the feeding ground?'' Rakka remarked with a look of confusion on his face.

''It's the name the guards have decided to give the place where the prisoners live.''

''Live? Is this a hell hole or a village?''

''They have nothing but the clothes on their backs, which we gave them. Guards do nothing, whatever happens, unless it's an escape attempt. They've got their own system; they like to fight for dominance. Some are better than others, since some are murderers, some are extreme thieves, others are… or should I say were assassins.''

''Did I get clothes?'' This was the only question Rakka could think of. The whole time he had been looking for his escape route, but this place was solid. And even he did see one, so what? His hands were tied. Very well in fact. His hands didn't even move when he tried to struggle. He'd have to try later.

''Take a look''

Indeed he had. He was wearing a white prison jumpsuit, made from a polyester/cotton material. It had several holes in and multiple bloodstains of varying colours. He was intrigued to know what happened to them. He could hazard a guess.

''Ok, so I've got some new clothes, albeit not as well tailored as my previous clothes, which I am intrigued to know, have gone where exactly.''

''We keep hold of all prisoners possessions. They can earn certain ones back on good behaviour. Lots of them haven't got anything back. Take that how you will.''

''Speaking of which when am I going to meet said prisoners.''

''Soon. We'll put you in the feeding ground and let things take their course.''

''And if I don't want to?'' Rakka looked her in the eye, trying to make her uncomfortable. She didn't even squirm.

''You don't have a choice.''

With that she pressed a button. Two things happened. 1: The cuffs fell off. Instantly Rakka flexed his wrists and prepared to attack. But before he could do anything, the ground lowered.

''Well,'' Rakka thought to himself. ''This should be good.''

Author's notes: Well that was a lot of dialogue. Also for some reason my laptop decide to make my sentences goes about 10 spaces in. As I was saying, there should be more action in the next chapter. I think. I dunno. Haven't flipped a coin for it yet. Thoughts in the comments please.


	3. Chapter 3

Disclaimer: I do not own mass effect. Done.

**Chapter 3**

Rakka

**3 days pre-Reaper war**

The ground stopped moving shortly after.

''This is containment area alpha,'' Mati's voice blared over loud speaker. ''It's where keep some of the very worst. Current residents say hello to your newest member.''

The current residents on their part didn't exactly look thrilled. There were about 20 of them give or take, from all races, standing in a large crowd. Asari mostly, but plenty of Turian and Salarians. As Rakka looked around, he analysed the area. It was a square area, about 40mx40m. As he looked around, he noticed 2 Krogan standing in a corner looking at him warily. A Quarian female was backing away from the crowd, wearing the suit that poor immunity forced her people to wear, this one a fetching shade of green. She seemed too eager to get as far away as possible it seemed. Rakka gave a quick thought as to why she was here, before returning back to the crowd.

''Hello. Who are you lot?''

Maybe not the best introduction he ever thought of, but it got him a response. An Asari pushed through the crowd, her white jumpsuit making the purple of skin stand out even further. Her suit had more tears in than the rest. She glared daggers at Rakka as if he was something nasty she'd stepped in.

''Who the hell are you?''

Rakka thought for a second.

''I asked you first.''

The Asari sneered at him.

''A funny guy huh? Do you know what we do to comedians here?''

''Tell them your name?'' Rakka hazarded.

''You want my name? Fine. Kella T'Senet, former commando and the boss around here. You want to do anything you ask me. Don't… well let's say it's been a while since Fenran beat up fresh meat.

Rakka frowned.

''Who's Fenran?''

Kella gave a short whistle, and a Turian stood up. He had several scars all over his face, but that wasn't his main feature. No, that went to his size. This guy was at least 7 feet, maybe more. His arms were massive, at least 20 centimetres thick each.

''Oh. So that's Fenran. '' Rakka said.

''Yeah. Now let's start with giving you a reputation. Pick someone.''

Rakka stared at her.

''What?''

''Depending on who you beat, you'll be more respected. Can't fight, then you'll die.''

''Yeah, I don't think so''

Rakka turned. He would analyse the walls in detail, trying to find any weakness, when he heard movement behind him. The crowd had formed around Kella, and looked ready to fight.

Kella shrugged.

''I warned you. Get him.''

The crowd yelled and charged towards him. Rakka turned and prepared to face the horde.

All hell broke loose.

A Salarian pulled ahead of the others, his fist raised. Rakka grabbed his arm, and using his own weight against him, threw him past, kicking him in the back. The extra push forced the Salarian into a wall, knocking him out with a satisfying crack. Then the rest arrived.

Rakka smiled grimly. It'd been too long since a fight like this. Out of the corner of eye, he noticed Kella and Fenran watching intently. The 2 Krogan were watching carefully, analysing the soon to happen violence. The Quarian was holding her stomach for some reason. Rakka had to break his concentration when an Asari threw a biotic punch at him. He dodged to the side, upper cutting her jaw, stunning her, and following through with a hand on the back of her head, forcing it to the crowd, while sweeping his leg to trip up the 2 Asari behind him, before turning around and banging their heads together. He noticed the Turians holding back, 8 of them minus Fenran, letting the Asari wear him down by charging him. As if on cue a swift punch caught him in the ribs. He retaliated by releasing a series of punches and kicks, before bioticaly pounding the ground, throwing all the Asari around him at least 20 feet, now all unconscious or groaning. He noticed the other Salarian checking on his fallen comrade. That just left the Turians. They looked ready to charge him. They were not having the pleasure. He ran towards them.

He grabbed the first one by the top of his head, and brought it down, raising his knee as he did so, causing them to meet in the middle. The Turian collapsed the floor, his face bleeding profusely where one of his mandibles broke. Rakka turned with his arm crossed in an X, which caught the impact of the punch. He kicked the assailer in the chin and sent him tumbling back. He then ducked, and let a punch sail over him. He raised his hand and caught the next punch, then with assistance of his biotics, broke his hands before kicking him to the ground. Surrounded by the injured bodies of their friends, he looked at the rest of the Turians, a furious look on his face.

''Dammit. Fenran get him.'' Before Rakka could react, there were a few deep thuds. Then a sledgehammer hit him in the head.

At least that's what it felt like. As his vision came back into alignment, he saw the brute of a Turian had picked him with 1 hand and was punching him in the gut with the other. Rakka could feel his ribs giving way and knew he had to act fast. He kicked out a few times, and by more luck than judgement, kicked him straight in the jaw. The Turian dropped him. As soon as he hit the floor, Rakka rolled and charged Fenran, tackling his legs. As Fenran hit the ground, Rakka stood up and begin to stomp on his face until the Turians face was a bloody mess. All that was left was Kella. As he turned to her, he saw a small ball of biotics about to hit him. Before he could react, it hit him. He went flying through the air, smacking his head on the wall. He must have blacked out for a few seconds, because the next thing he knew Kella's voice was floating above him, occasionally accompanied by a kick to the ribs.

''Think your too good for our system?'' Kick. ''Think you could beat _me_? Kick.

Rakka stayed silent. Any noise could give away his plan.

'I'll show you''. Kick.

Rakka elbowed her standing leg in between kicks, she lost balanced and almost fell over. In the time it took her to reclaim her balance, Rakka had jumped and was punching her face repeatedly, until she collapsed.

Looking and the chaos around him Rakka looked at the remaining prisoners.

''Right you lot, I'm going to sleep now. Try to kill me, I'll wake up and I won't be as nice as I was now.''

Leaving that threat hanging, he went to a corner, lied down closed his eyes and went to sleep.

Author's notes: Bit short this one. Don't worry next chapter will be the last completely Rakka chapter, and let me introduce my ''final'' character. Until then, thoughts in the comments.


	4. Chapter 4

Disclaimer: la-di-da-di-da, Bit later this one, but it happens. So there.

**Chapter 4**

**Rakka**

**2 days pre-Reaper war.**

Rakka was awoken by a soft pushing on his shoulder. His eyes snapped open and he turned to look up, fists clenched in case of attack, just to look into the visor of the Quarian from yesterday.

''Breakfast time.''

She turned and walked away. Rakka sat up and looked around. Several armed guards was keeping check on the prisoners, who on their part were looking intently at two crates the guards had bought in, one considerably larger than the other. A quick glance at the crowd and noticed the Turians and the Quarian looking at the smaller crate. Must be more food for the amino's then, which made sense, given the ratio of amino's to dextro's. Rakka moved closer to get a better look as the guards opened the crates to reveal packs of colourless sludge. One of the guards placed a bowel and spoon next to the amino crate, while a Turian placed a bowel and spoon next to the dextro crate. Rakka noticed a slight difference in colour between the two crates of sludge, the amino's were a slightly lighter shade of grey, probably so a cross acid incident didn't happen.

''You guys know the drill,'' The Turian guard said, almost bored, ''One pack each. No movement till we leave.'' With that the Guards left, 2 never taking their eyes off the crowd. As soon as they left, Rakka noticed the Quarian make a slight movement towards the dextro bowl, before Fenran pushed out of the way so violently, she got knocked off her feet. As he got on 1 knee to and leant out to grab the bowl, Rakka grabbed his arm and placed his leg on the softest point of a Turian elbow and applied enough pressure to make the Turian wince.

''I think it would be better manners to let the lady eat first, don't you think?'' He asked the Turian with a smile on his face, before adding more pressure. He wondered how much more the arm could take. The Turian crumbled.

''Okay, okay she can have it.''

Rakka looked at the Quarian, here face unreadable under the mask. She reached for the bowl and spoon, tentatively, like she was expecting it to bite, before snatching it and grabbing a packet before retreating. Rakka let go of the Turian, grabbing an amino packet, and kicked the bowl towards the crowd, opening his packet and scooped some out, noticing the blandness, and letting the crowd fight for the bowl behind him.

…

Several hours later, Rakka was still checking the walls for weakness, when he saw the Quarian press the wall several times and a door opened. Frowning from curiosity, as he went to where she had just been. He touched the wall, and a holographic interface popped up. Rakka was amazed by this, pushed even further until it came up: ENTER IDENTIFICATION.

Rakka entered his name, and a door opened. He went inside. It was a plain room, with basic chairs, and several cells. To his left, he saw the Quarian jump.

''Sorry for scaring you. That's a point, why did I scare you?'' Rakka said in a friendly voice.

''Nothing, just caught me unawares.'' The Quarian replied in a quiet, nervous voice.

Rakka saw her try and hide something behind her back.

''What's that? Can I have a look?'' Rakka put out his hand slowly, not wanting to appear hostile. The Quarian hesitated, before handing him a data pad. He tapped the screen and a list came up.

''Last days of summer… Hope for the hills… The story of the seaman…'' He looked up at her.

''You read?''

The Quarian nodded

''When I was put here they took away my books. Over time they gave me this datapads, and files of the books for good behaviour.''

''You had actual books? I'm guessing that wasn't on the flotilla. Are you on your pilgrimage?

The Quarian looked taken aback, before whispering like she was afraid someone would hear.

''You know of it?''

''One of my contacts used to be a Quarian who would feed me information that he found on his pilgrimage when I was on a large colony looking for a target. Speaking of crimes, why are you here?

The Quarian looked down, ashamed as far as Rakka could tell.

''I was too confident. I saw some files of prototype shielding the Asari were developing. I hacked in to the system and got up blueprints. They were flawed, but I planned to bring them back to fleet and complete them. But I made myself known. 3 hours later, they raided the building I was in, and here I am''.

Rakka thought a bit, before asking you were starving weren't you? The way you were holding your stomach. '' The Quarian nodded with earnest. ''I used to be fast enough to set up my feeding tube, and eat before Fenran got me, but he started waiting close enough to get it first. I hadn't eaten in 4 days.

Rakka thought for a while. He did a quick analysis of what he knew to this point before out bursting ''AHA!'', causing the Quarian to stumble back. ''I think I can get us out within the day. Get your datapad.''

….

''I hope this works.'' The Quarian grumbled. ''Best I can gather, the access system goes to a main server. Your datapad gets in the server, opens the gates escape. Done. Press the buttons''

The Quarian tapped her datapad. ''I'm through.''

''Before we go, what's your name?''

''Seva. Seva Vas'Terran.'' Rakka smiled. ''Rakka. Rakka Terketa. Nice knowing you.''

As if on que, the back wall raised up. More elaborate than the simple door the guards used. Probably if an execution squad needed to come in. Immediately an alarm sounded, while the prisoners looked on in shock.

Rakka did some thoughts. He remembered the plans, with various escape shuttles. He might be able to make it himself, but with the Quarian…

''FREEEDOOOM!'' He yelled as he grabbed the Quarians arm and ran for the new exit. He was aware of Kella gave a battle cry, and the stampede of the crowd.

As Rakka got through the exit, two armed Asari armed with avengers charged. He ran up to first and broke her wrist, before taking her gun, and proceeded to shoot the other in the shoulder.

''I won't kill you,'' he said as she cried in pain, ''that's their job.'' He pulled the Quarian away as the crowd got to the guard. There was several gunshots, before silence, then Kella yelled ''to the engine room.''

45 minutes later, and Rakka was still walking around, Quarian in tow. There were sounds of violence all around as more prisoners were released by the others. As they passed a room, he stopped. There was his coat, and a gym bag of books. The Quarian gasped in delight and picked up the bag. Rakka took the bag off her, and slung it over his shoulder. ''I'm stronger it'll help us move faster.'' As if on que an alarm began blaring: ENGINE MELTDOWN. DETONATION IN APPROXIMATLY 10 MINUITES AND COUNTING.

''Well, we better move fast'' Rakka muttered before breaking into a light jog. As they reached the escape shuttles, most of which were destroyed or left, leaving 1 behind, two Asari were fighting a brutal battle. Rakka identified them as Kella and Mati. Mati noticed Rakka, and gasped in surprise, allowing Kella to kick her to the ground and began to bioticallty charged her fist. Rakka almost casually shot her in the head, before pointing the gun at the spectre.

''You have 2 choices. I kill you now, and me and the Quarian leave. 2. You come with us to the Citadel, wipe my name from records, and probably get drinks. Which is it'' He extended his left hand, and pointed the gun at her with the other. ''Well?''

The Asari looked breathless in disbelief. She took his hand,

''Smart girl. We'll be there in about a day. Let's go.''

With that, they entered the shuttle and set a course to the Citadel.

Author's notes: Not as refined as I would like, but was in a bit of a rush, but I like to think I got the events across. Next chapter is my first non-Rakka chapter. Until then, good bye.


	5. Chapter 5

Author's notes: On my final character, got an idea for a fifth, but whether or not you want them, up to you guys. Without further ado, let's get on with it!

P.S I don't own mass effect. Not sure how often I have to disclaim this thing, but I'll do every now and again.

Chapter 5

**Garl.**

**2 days pre-Reaper war.**

''Hrahh!'' Garl yelled as he brought his foot down on the Varren's head, causing blood to spurt everywhere. A vicious pain on his hump. He reached over his shoulder and yanked off yet another Varren, along with a large chunk of flesh, put his hands inside its jaw, avoiding the teeth, and pulled, until with an all-mighty SNAP, the Varrens jaw broke. He looked around the pit, where another 5 Varren were surrounding him. With a curse he looked up at the Krogan that had pushed him down here. ''I'll have your spine for this Kreshok! ''. Kreshok laughed down at him. ''Surely, a few Varren are no match for a member the mighty Therrock clan? I'll be back.''. Garl cursed, and pulled out his shotgun. A 300-M claymore, pre-modification, no one other than Krogan and implanted races could use this gun safely. He ran towards the Varren, shot one and while reloading, stamped on another's spine, breaking it, shot another. As one jumped towards him, he swivelled his gun, holding the barrel and swung it like a bat, breaking its neck. As the last one snarled, he picked it up with biotics and crushed it until it was a gooey pile. With that he turned around and walked to the wall, flaring his biotics. With that he punched a small hole in the rock with one hand, then the other, then with his feet. With surprising speed he climbed. 2 minutes later, Garl was out just as Kreshok returned. The armoured Krogan looked opened moth as the topless Krogan reattached his armour taken from him earlier.

Garl saw him and with a snarl, charged him. Kreshok tried to block, but Garl kicked him in the stomach then kneed him in the face, forcing him on his back. Before he could react, Garl pointed his shotgun at his face. ''Now, the information.'' Garl snapped. ''I...I...I can't. He'll kill me.'' Kreshok said, terror in his voice. ''that's a later problem,'' Garl growled, pushing the barrel closer to Kreshok's face. ''Now where is he?'' ''I don't know okay? My informant lost track of him, but my Citadel man told me that he's been spotted. That's your best bet.''

Garl frowned. ''If he isn't there, I'll be back.'' With that, he began to walk away. ''He'll kill you, you know?'' Kreshok said as he picked himself up off the floor. To this Garl smirked. ''He's already tried.''

….

**1 day pre-Reaper war**

''Sir, I'm going to have to ask you to hand over the weapon.'' A human male, burly by their standards, barked at Garl. Garl, burly by Krogan standards, looked down at him. He was accompanied by 2 Turians. As he took a step towards them, he noticed them instinctively tighten their grips on their weapons by their side. He took his eyes off them and looked at the human. ''On who's authority?'' He growled. The human was sweating a little. ''C-secs.'' ''Will I get it back after?'' ''Yes. Just tell them your name, and you'll get it back. What is your name?'' ''Therrock Garl'' Garl said as he passed his claymore to the officer. The human almost dropped it before he adjusted to the weight. ''Thank you sir. Anything else?'' ''Yes actually,'' Garl said, annoyed by the holdup, ''is the skywalk bar still here?'' The officer nodded. ''Do you need directions?'' ''I'm good'' With that Garl plodded off, determined to see if C-sec hadn't nicked the skywalks 'special juice'. Honestly with aliens, one person goes blind, and no-one else is allowed any.

**Rakka**

''So why are we here again?'' The Quarian asked nervously. She didn't seem to like the crowds much. Strange given the Quarian lifestyle. ''Honestly Seva, you don't have to be so nervous.'' Mati calmed her. She was good at that. ''You two are going to delete me from records, and Seva's going to get the shield plans, or at least a altered version, and that will also be erased.'' Rakka repeated himself for about the 8th time. ''While you do that, I'm going to collect a package. Then, I buy us drinks. We've earned it. Yes even you Mati, who was so smug and willing to kill me. I'll forgive you for that when Then, I buy us drinks. We've earned it. Yes even you Mati, who was so smug and willing to kill me. I'll forgive you for that when you get rid of my file,'' Rakka continued. ''I don't think that's too hard for you to understand.''

Mati scowled at him. ''I'm 400 years old and you're talking to me like that?'' You're Asari, being old is nothing much. Trust me; I've met enough to get points in knowing what I'm on about. Now this is where I depart. Have fun, meet you at the bar. You remember what it's called?'' ''the skywalk' 'Seva answered. ''Good girl. Now go and sort out those files.''

As they walked away, Rakka started looking in the vents. ''Ferret. Feeerret. FERRETFERRETFERRET, he yelled into it. There was a pull on the back of his coat. A young Asari, about 9 stood there. ''Hey Rakka one more thing…'' Seva jogged up to him before forgetting what she was saying as she saw the young Asari, who smiled at her. ''Rakka, who is this?'' ''Oh Seva, say hello to Ferret. She's a duct rat. rare, Asari duct rats, but not unheard of.'' ''Why is she called Ferret? 'Seva wondered aloud. ''Because like an Earth ferret, she is very flexible.'' As if to demonstrate, Ferret bent backwards, until her head was between her legs. Seva stared amazed. ''How can you do that?'' ''She can't talk.'' Seva looked at him ''Why not?'' Ferret opened her mouth to reveal a sliced mess of a tongue. ''Despite the way it looks, she was born it.'' Rakka looked back at Ferret and gave a credit chit. ''Go find Jeremy-You know the fat one?- tell him to bring my package here.'' Ferret tapped her hands on the wall, several times, but Seva was unsure why. ''You're welcome. Now go.'' As Ferret ran off, Rakka looked at Seva. ''I taught her the Morse code equivalent of the council races. It's how she gets her point across. Now I recommend you get back to Mati, I'm guessing she won't be happy that you're keeping her waiting.'' With that Seva left. Rakka chuckled to himself before waiting in silence.

About 20 minutes later Ferret returned with a rather fat man, with a red face and a short goatee. ''Rakka? Well, when Ferret came to me, I could barely believe it, it's been what, 5 years?'' Said the man. Rakka smiled ''5 years, 2 months and 17 days. Nice to see you too Henry. Do you have it?'' The man brought out a small briefcase and opened it. ''1 set of monomolecular knuckle claws.'' He handed the pair of claws to Rakka who put them on. He gave a small flick of his wrist, and the flicked out, glowing wickedly in the neon lights. Each had two claws over the knuckles of the pinkie finger and the forefinger. ''And two custom made pistol, and pressure holder and ammo holder,'' continued Henry, handing a pair of predator pistol with a small modification to the barrel and sidearm holder and a netting which when Rakka put on, was almost invisible. There were already thermal clips in it. Rakka did a quick test. He drew the pistols, and two thermal clips popped out the holder, ready for him as he slammed the pistols over them. He quickly pocketed them before anyone noticed. ''Thanks Henry.'' ''Happy to be of help'' He replied as he walked away. Rakka quickly gave Ferret another chit before running to the bar.

….

''So how did it go?'' Rakka said as they walked to the Skywalk. ''Really well! I got a modified version, so the Asari can't arrest me for stealing government secrets, and as far as the law is concerned, you don't exist'' Seva said happily as she practically skipped along in happiness. ''Quick question Seva, how old are you?'' Rakka asked with interest. ''19. Why?''

''Just seeing if you can drink'' He laughed as they entered the bar. He froze mid laugh before, walking again. ''Keep your heads down'' He said in a hushed voice. ''Why?'' Mati replied in an equally hushed tone. ''You see that Krogan over there? We've tried to kill each other too many times. His name is Garl. And he is a tough SOB. I'd rather not fight him here.'' They were at the bar now. ''But I doubt he is here by chance. And if previous encounters have taught me anything, he is behind, preparing to swing a punch. So I recommended DUCK!'' Rakka yelled as a Krogan fist entered his peripheral vision.

**Authors notes: Okay, first choice, a minor one but still. Who do you want to win the fight: Rakka or Garl? Private message me (PM), or just put it in the comments, it's just easier to read a PM. And this was written in bold for no reasons. So pick one. I'll count them tomorrow when I start writing the next chapter.**


	6. Chapter 6

Author's notes: Took me a while. Deal with it. This isn't my franchise, so you know. Don't know why I have to disclaim it. I doubt Mac Walters or Casey Hudson are gonna sue me for this. On with it.

Chapter 6

**Rakka**

Rakka turned both hands up to catch the punch. Still it had enough force to throw him through the air, resulting in him landing heavily on a table. ''Mati, get Seva out of here, this could get messy,'' He said before sitting up. ''Hello Garl. Long-time-no see. How you been?'' asked as he jumped to one side. He remembered how hard this guy hit. The little incident a minute ago also helped. Garl made him rather go 10 rounds with Fenran again. He ducked the punch heading towards him, before attempting a high kick. But Garl wasn't stupid, he had fought Rakka before, he grabbed the leg and threw him over his shoulder. ''Ow''. Rakka pulled himself up. ''Face it, you never could fight me alone could you?'' Garl snarled as he picked Rakka up by the scruff of his coat. Rakka responded but kicking the Krogan under the chin, before squirming out and landing several hits in quick succession, ending with him smacking a chair over Garls head. The Krogan growled, kicking Rakka in the chest, forcing him to bend over, before ramming his knee in the Drells face, before again picking him up and throwing him. The once quiet bar looked like a warzone, with broken glass, tables and chairs and guests escaping. The bar tender was talking to someone on his Omni-tool. ''If I can't fight you, how did I beat you last time?'' Rakka groaned between clenched teeth. ''Don't you remember?'' Garl sarcastically replied, before being knocked down after Rakka's foot had a quick meeting with his stomach, then a high quick brought down on his head settled the dispute for a few seconds. ''Of course. I shot you with a grenade launcher, you fell down a 15 foot drop, before a lot of rocks fell on you. I had hoped that had finished it.'' Rakka sighed. ''And I have none of those things.'' With that, he vaulted over the Krogan and ran to the bar.

''Let's see… no…no…no… AHA.'' He pulled the pipe like bottle out. It was filled with some green Salarian alcohol. ''Does anyone have a lighter?'' He stood on the bar and kicked Garl in the face; As the Krogan swung his arm and knocked Rakka's feet from under him, causing him to drop the alcohol. It rolled towards a dark haired human male. Rakka picked himself up but Garl grabbed his leg. Rakka flared his biotics up. Garl chuckled. ''So you wanna use biotics?'' He flared up his own. Both threw a throw, and Rakka realised his stupidity. He might's have well tried to wash away Kahje's oceans away with a bucket of water. The Krogan's throw consumed his and kept going. It hit Rakka and Garl might's have well thrown a combine harvester at him. He flew back, and smashed through the window, into a fountain. The cool water aroused him from the brink of unconsciousness.

He was pulled out of the water, and to his surprise, it was the male whom the alcohol had rolled towards. He placed said alcohol into Rakka's hand, alongside a lighter. Too exhausted to speak, Rakka nodded appreciatively, before staggering up to Garl, who was walking leisurely towards the Drell. Rakka popped the bottle open, and threw it over the Krogan. Garl laughed. ''Is that all you got, some weak Salarian booze?'' He began to laugh.

''Not…weak.'' Rakka gasped. ''Flammable.'' With that he lit the lighter, and threw it at Garl. A weak throw, but enough. Flames engulfed the Krogan. He began to yell in pain before diving into the fountain. As his head broke the service, Rakka had his mono-claws pointed at his forehead. Just at that moment a voice yelled: C-sec. Get on the ground. Both of you.

Several hours later, Rakka was pacing his cell. He and Garl had been placed in opposite cells. These cells were made to hold Krogan, but they weren't taking chances with the Drell. He heard a familiar voice in the distance. The distance in this case being just up the hall. ''Release them both. Spectre authority .'' Mati walked up to the cell. ''Well isn't this familiar?'' She said as the cells opened. ''Why didn't you just leave me here? Actually more important question, why are you releasing him?'' said Rakka, indignantly. ''Because you can both fight.'' ''So can you'' Rakka retorted. Mati narrowed her eyes. ''There was a sudden increase in Batarian ships. We thought it was an invasion, but they are mostly refugees. There has been a lot of Radio chatter across Earth and Palaven does not bode well. I'm waiting for an update. I'm releasing you because something big is coming, and you two are some of the best I've seen, so that's why.'' Garl began to walk off. ''I'm getting my things where are they?'' ''Seized as evidence. Your things are down the hall.'' Mati looked back at Rakka. ''Go with him. No arguments.'' Rakka grumbled before following him. As they walked in awkward silence they passed two Turians dressed in strange armour, black and gold with blue rims. Rakka heard some of their conversation ''…. Vakarian warned us about this.'' ''I know, I was there. I don't know why he is ordering us to evac the whole colony. We're far too understaffed to pull it off. And if, very big if, he is right, how are we going to get everyone out in time before… You know.'' His colleague laughed ''Well, Octavian, we converting you to the way of the Reaper now are we. 2 months ago you were swearing murder at Vakarian 'cause you didn't believe him.'' Rakka turned to Garl. ''I am now going to trust you as much as it pains me. Go get my staff. I think I'm going to get us a job. Possibly shooting stuff. I knew you'd like it.'' He turned away before the dumbstruck Krogan could answer. ''Hello lads.'' He said approaching the Turians. ''I heard you need extra hands in an evacuation. Well here they are.'' He gave them a two handed wave. ''There's 3 more pairs like that. So can I help?'' He gave them a smile. The Turians mulled it over. ''Well… Vakarian doesn't have to know.'' ''Are you kidding me Tevak? Since when do we bring civilians?'' ''Since a Spectre said so'' Mati strolled towards them, Seva in tow. ''Now where is it?'' 'The two Turians looked at each other, before the one called Octavian said ''A colony, on one of Palaven's largest moons. Agriculture mostly. Some of the Turians best scientists work there, alongside a large colony, a few hundred totals. We have the shuttles, but only a handful of men covering. We need help'' ''we will leave right away. It'll be a few hours though.'' Rakka stated. Tevak shrugged ''at the way we're moving, that'll leave about ¾ of the people left. Have fun.'' ''What do we get?'' Garl seemed to come out of thin air, making Seva jump. It still amazed Rakka how quit a seven and a half foot Krogan could be so quiet. Octavian shrugged. ''Maybe you'll get a discretionary payment at the end. Not for me to say.'' ''Is there any problem is there Garl?'' Rakka asked with a smile that didn't reach his face. ''No. It's just nice to know.'' Garl replied calmly. ''Then without further ado, let's go!''

**The Reapers have entered our galaxy.**

Author's notes: There we go. Rakka won, like you asked. The Reapers arrived. As planned. Chapter seven will go up when I write it. Captain obvious away!


	7. Chapter 7

Author's notes: Got a few ideas for things. But stick with the present.

**Chapter 7 **

Mati T'Dena

''I'm bored'' Seva said for the umpteenth time. Mati sighed. ''They said do you want to help, you said yes. They said do you have combat experience. You told them you killed some mercs.'' ''I have.'' Seva grumbled ''they asked you preferred weapon, you said shotgun, they gave you a shotgun'' Mati continued unfazed, before banging on the shuttle behind her to take off. They were standing about 30 feet from each other, with shuttles taking off behind them, then more taking their spot. They'd evacuated most of the civilians. There were about 30 civilians. They'd only be here for another 10 minutes. Mati was holding an avenger nonchalantly in one hand. Seva was to her right, holding a katana in her hands, looking uncomfortable from the heat. To her right stood Rakka looking bored and holding his pistol, and after that Garl with his claymore, with a look on his face that was practically challenging someone to cause trouble. She stood there wondering what this was all for, when her Omni-tool beeped. She looked at the information that had just come through. She looked at it and gasped in disbelief. ''What is it?'' Rakka popped up behind her. ''Show us'' Garl was there too. How long had she stood there like that? ''Mati? What's wrong?'' Seva inquired. She showed them the message:

EARTH IS UNDER HEAVY ATTACK FROM UNKNOWN FORCES! LEAVE SOL SYSTEM ASAP. PALAVEN UNDER HEAVY ATTACK BY UNKOWN FORCES. LEAVE TREBIA SYSTEM ASAP!''

The message continued. But this was literally shadowed by what came next. A large shape blotted out the sun, and as Mati watched dumbstruck, landed. It was a colossal ship. A ship that size shouldn't be able to land, but what came next confused her even more. It _walked_. ''The hell…'' Rakka began, but was cut short as the sky began to rain fire. The fires landed, and stood up. They were strange creatures, with 4 eyes, and a large gaping raised its right arm, and began to fire. Several of the Turian guard didn't react fast enough, and were promptly gunned down. Mati ran behind a shuttle, and prepared herself. She peeked out of cover, and took aim. She fired, gunning down several. But there was no end to them. More began to land, and Mati noticed they looked suspiciously Turian, and then something grabbed her from behind. It began to bludgeon at her head, forcing her to the ground. There was a large familiar roar, and the pressure alleviated She turned to see Garl holding what looked like a human skeleton covered in tech. Garl threw it to the ground and stomped on its head, popping it like a grape. He smiled victoriously before something large picked him up and threw him.

It was large and brown, with armour its front and a Turian head, strangely unsettling on this brute of a creature. It turned to her and charged. Her spectre training kicked in, and she sent a large throw under its chin, and knocked it on its back. This barely phased it, as it pulled itself up. It charged again, knocking her flying. She felt herself being dragged away from the fight. She woke to a Turian applying medi gel to her head. ''You have to go'' He said, gently pulling her up. ''This moon is lost; we haven't the men to co-ordinate a resistance, and the boss said to get off this moon. There's a shuttle, get your friends and go.'' He ran off back to the fight. Mati spotted the shuttle. ''Guys, get to the shuttle!'' She began to run for it. Shortly Rakka and Garl overtook her. She heard a small squeal, and saw Seva being picked up by one of the big ones crushing her in its claw hand. She had dropped her gun.

Before Mati could react, Rakka ran past and jumped on the monster and flared up his biotics, and pulled with obvious strain. With a massive snap, its head tore off. Grabbing it, Rakka took the head, pulled Seva up, and grabbed her gun. They got in the shuttle with Mati at the helm. They took off as another wave arrived. The sight below them made Mati want to scream. At least a dozen of those weird squid shaped ships had landed, and were laying waste to everything, with multiple smaller ones at their side. Multiple ships Mati knew from reports as Collector, fired down from above the ground whilst dispensing troops. The Turian had been right, the moon was lost. ''At least we saved everyone.'' Rakka said as he patched Seva up. ''Not everyone'' Garl noted in a quiet voice, as if he was also shocked by what had just happened. ''We go back to the Citadel, and we find out what's happening okay?'' Mati said. No one bothered to answer. She set the course and headed to the mass relay, while behind them Palaven burned.

Author's notes: That was a really short chapter, but I just wanted to get the point across. Reviews, PM's you know the drill.


	8. Chapter 8

Author's notes: Been away, sorry about that.

**Chapter 8**

**Rakka**

''that's a lot of traffic.'' Those were the first words Rakka had said since their defeat. And he was right. What looked like hundreds of shuttles along with carriers and disused ships of all shapes and sizes were flooding the docks. He noted Mati press some buttons. ''This is Mati T'Dena, council Spectre. Can we get to a dock a bit quicker please?'' There was moment of silence before a voice replied ''of course Ma'am.'' Go to Docking bay E7.'' Mati gave her thanks, before piloting the shuttle to the bay. As soon as they were fully docked, Rakka opened the shuttle and got out. As he walked away, Seva ran up to him. ''Where are you going?'' She asked in her normal inquisitive way. ''Rakka pulled her hand off gently. ''I'm going to my Hanar contact. See how the invasion has hit them,'' '' Then we're going along too'' Garl grunted from behind them.

Rakka narrowed his eyes. ''And why is that.'' 'Because if they have been hit by those…things, then I want payback.'' ''I'm going to look at the records, see what we know about them. They looked like Sovereign, and I'm willing to guess that's not coincidence.'' Mati backed up. ''I'll go with you, I'll help get through the system faster' 'Seva called out as Mati walked away, jogging to catch up. Rakka turned to Garl. ''Let's go then.''

They got into an elevator and Rakka pressed the button. As they waited, Rakka watched Garl. He was waiting for any muscle tensing, any preparation for violence. Instead, Garl looked at him. ''What?'' Rakka didn't flinch. ''I'm just waiting for you to try and kill me.'' Garl chuckled ''that was only business. Twice. The third time was just a test. To see if we truly could kill one another.'' The elevator opened. ''Now we're here''

As they got out Rakka turned to Garl. ''You'll have to be polite.'' ''Aren't I always.'' They walked towards an office. As it opened a Hanar floating behind their equivalent of a desk. It turned in their direction. ''Hello Rakka,'' It said, its voice the wispy trademark of the race. ''How can this one help you?'' ''Sethtan, I need information, how has the invasion hit the Hanar?'' Sethtan paused for a moment. ''Do you mean the Reapers?'' Rakka blinked twice ''Reapers? You know what the invaders are called?'' ''It is a long story, but yes, this one does know what the invaders are called.'' Rakka thought before resuming speech ''that's all well and good, but how are the Hanar faring?'' ''We have not come under attack directly. However, the Reapers are determined in their war. Any of our colonies they have come across have been wiped out. We have observed the strengths and defences of the Reapers. If they attack Kahje, they will destroy us.'' Even in the time of stress that it was talking about, the Hanar remained scarily calm. ''However we have discovered something of interest. A Krogan relic. Back from the Krogan rebellions in fact.'' Garl leaned forward. ''What kind of relic?'' The Hanar turned to him. ''Plans really. An improvement on the Anti-ship cannon. It was far head of its time. And what the Hanar need. We would not have to build them from scratch; merely adapt the plans onto Kahje's current defences. Unfortunately our contact who found it has gone dark. It was good that you came along.'' ''Where are the plans?'' Garl interrupted. Rakka saw the Hanar bristle in annoyance at the Krogan but continued. ''Why Tuchanka of course.''

Several minutes later and much discussing, the duo bumped into the girls. Literally in in Rakka's case, who bounced of Mati and landed on his backside, much to the other three's amusement. '' Me and Garl have to go to Tuchanka without you.'' He said pokerfaced. That stopped them laughing. ''Why is that?'' Mati demanded. ''Because Garl is a Krogan, and with Tuchanka's new regime he should be tolerated for a while at least. And we have to be sneaky and neither of you's two are anywhere good enough.'' ''When are you going?'' Seva said quietly. It was obvious she didn't like the idea of them being hurt, especially since Rakka had saved her life back on the moon. ''Now.'' With that, they pushed past and went to the shuttle.

The ride was uneventful to say the least. It took several hours to pass through the necessary relays. Garl had been shifting irritably, annoyed by the enclosed space, his territorial instinct wanting to own the space. Rakka on his part had spent the trip looking at the scanner and reading newsfeeds. None of it had been good. Death tolls were in the tens of millions. The best the war was going was fighting the Reapers to a standstill. At best, most people weren't so lucky. The Salarians were fairly unscathed, Sur'Kesh in one piece. Rakka knew the Salarians weren't kidding themselves. The Reapers were ignoring them. Palaven and Earth weren't so lucky. There were countless pictures of Palaven burning, as was Earth, all forces kept pinned, their forces being eroded by the Reapers relentlessness. The Asari were surprisingly spirited in the fight. Despite their normal tactics of stealth and sabotage being nigh on useless, they were holding out well. Rakka was looking at reported Reaper movements and noticed the amount of the monsters bearing down on Thessia. If the Asari were playing hard to get, why not bring them to the Reapers?

His thoughts of doom and gloom were interrupted by the Turian shuttle pilot cursing and pushing buttons. Rakka turned, and promptly walked into the doorframe. It was not his day. He continued to the cabin. ''What's wrong?'' He asked his voice calm. ''There's a damn cruiser firing at us'' The Turian said without looking, ''I can't tell the make, but it's in our way.'' ''Move please.''

The Turian looked at him ludicrous. ''Why would I do tha-'' His sentence was cut short by Garl head-butting him hard enough that the Turian collapsed from his seat. Rakka slid in place. ''You might want to sit down, this is going to get rough.'' With that he did the last thing he and hopefully the pilots of the other ship were thinking.

He charged the cruiser.

As he got close he fired the Kodiaks guns at the cruiser. He doubted that it even scratched the shields. Just as impact was about to occur, he pulled up. As the cruiser turned he increased the speed towards Tuchanka, and the specific co-ordinates of the info-banks carrying the plans. Just as they hit the atmosphere, the cruiser fired. Rakka wrested it to the side, but the added atmosphere slowed it. The cruisers shot mostly missed, but enough of it hit to blow the side of the back end of the shuttle off. The Kodiak started spinning out of control. Rakka pressed all the buttons he could as they started to descend at worrying speeds. He looked at Garl. ''Put your seatbelts on, this is gonna get bumpy.'' Garl looked a bit weird when he said that. As they continued to spin, he realized it was because he was smiling manically. ''Thank you for flying Rakka airlines, please fl-''. He was cut off by the shuttle hitting the ground at high speed.

Authors notes: Sorry it's been so long. Stuff happened. Next week, Tuchanka!


	9. Chapter 9

Author's notes: This was meant to be a chapter a day. That went well didn't it? Also, LEAVE MORE REVIEWS! THEY ARE ACTIVELY WANTED!

**A galaxy at war chapter 9**

**Seva Vas'Terran**

When Rakka and Garl left, Seva stayed in the Citadel as long as she could with Mati, waiting for the duo to return. She lasted 16 minutes. She and Mati were sitting in the Skywalk lounge. She tapped tentatively on Mati's arm. As nice as the Asari had been to her, her… aura was the best way to put it gave off a power and authority that frankly scared Seva. Mati looked up from the datapad she'd been reading. ''Yes?'' Seva prepared herself for the Asari's answer to her next question. She took a deep breath. ''About these shield plans...'' ''You want to take them back to the fleet?'' Seva was taken back from the Asari's accuracy and bluntness. ''Oh don't be surprised, I've seen you looking at the shuttles, no doubt working out courses. You want to do it before the guys get back.'' Mati said as a fact, not a question. ''Yes, but...'' Seva begun before being cut off by Mati ''I don't know where they are, but you probably do. And I've got a ship.'' She smiled, ''so do you want to go or not?''

About half an hour later, and multiple elevator rides, they arrived at a bulkhead. Bay F-18 it said, painted on in bold letters. There was a terminal to one side of the massive door. Mati went up to it, scanning her Omni-tool, her Irises, and her hands. With a loud grating noise, the bulkhead opened. Lights flickered from ages of no uses. And when they finally lit up, they revealed the most beautiful ship that Seva had ever seen.

It was a large frigate, with a long body. On either side, 2 diagonal wings stuck out, giving it an arrow like appearance. On these 'wings' were flaps, undoubtedly where the GARDIAN lasers were. It had an upright tail and jagged edges. It was white, streaked with purple and green. On its side the word _Malthaka_ was painted in deep black. As Mati and Seva went in, and Mati started the ship and the lights came on, Seva couldn't believe what she was seeing. Everything was so _clean_. It was a variety of colours with each room a different colour, like 20 teams of decorators had been hired, and all given different plan. As she looked around, a female voice came from behind her.

''Hello.'' Seva looked around the room before resting her eyes on a golden holographic orb. ''Hello?'' Seva stated cautiously before berating herself for her stupidity, it was just a V.I. ''I am VACU, the ships A.I.'' At this Seva froze. This was trouble. She almost jumped out of her skin when Mati placed her arm on her shoulder. She instead settled for a small scream. Mati looked at her anxiously. ''Are you OK?'' she asked looking Seva over, like she was trying to see for damage through her suit. ''There's an A.I on board!'' Seva gasped out. ''Yes that's VACU. She was lucky not to have been deleted when this ship was decommissioned, although she would have eventually have been destroyed before I bought this ship.'' ''I am sorry, I did not mean to alarm you'' VACU said in the background. Seva shuddered. ''How did you get this ship anyway?'' Seva asked as she walked away. ''I'll tell you when you put in the co-ordinates. We're flying to nowhere at the moment.'' Seva hadn't even noticed they'd taken off. +

When they arrived in the cockpit, Seva looked on amazed. There was a soft looking chair, with smooth interfaces. There were very few ships like this in the flotilla, where some of the ships were still from the morning war. As she put in the co-ordinates, Mati began. ''Thewas a project to see what the Turians, Asari and Salarians could accomplish when working together on one big project. It, as you can see is a brilliant ship. Unfortunately, one of the builders decided to put in an A.I, and wired it completely in. You take out the blue box, the ship falls apart, tech-wise, and physically. It was to be destroyed. However, I made some generous donations to the right people.'' ''Where did you get the money?'' Seva asked absently as she looked in wonder at the controls. ''Being a Spectre has its advantages. A few thousand from drug raids here, some petty cash from breaking slave rings, it all adds up.'' ''How much was this?'' ''1.5 million creds. Cheap.'' VACU answered. Seva looked wearily at it. ''What does VACU mean?'' ''VACU is the phonetic pronunciation of the abbreviation V.A.C.U. which in turn stands for Viral and Counter-attack Unit. In battle, I assist with piloting the ship, and breaking enemy firewalls and defences.'' ''I probably should have warned you about the A.I. when you got on board.'' ''No worries.'' Seva wished she sounded more confident. ''How do you run a ship this size with little to no crew?'' at this Mati's face went a deep purple. ''I may have let off some of VACU's shackles.'' At this Seva's eyes widened and her eyes darted around looking for a good exit, before returning her gaze to Mati. ''You did what!?'' Mati held her hands up defensively. ''Don't worry, there is still enough shackles in place for her to be harmless.'' ''It's not a her, it's an it.'' Seva replied sharply. With that she stomped away, and she could swear she could feel the A.I. following her.

It had been about 3 hours of brooding in a bed that Seva had taken a like to. It was a double bed, surprising, given that this was a military ship. But then everything here was luxurious. Turned out Mati had it renovated. The room she was in was a soothing turquoise colour, with little decoration, save a bedside table and a chair at the end of the bed. She was reading one of the books she had picked up in her travel. It was some cheesy romance novel, but she wasn't really paying attention. Her brain was too busy dealing with other stuff, such as that A.I., Rakka and Garls mission, of course the safety of the fleet, especially during the war. She looked up as the door opened and Mati walked through. She took a seat on the chair. She looked at Seva. ''Are you okay?'' ''I'm okay. I'm just… worried about the fleet, you know? With the war going on…I don't know.'' Mati thought was quiet for bit, thinking. The room was silent for a while, before Seva asked, ''Do you have any family?'' Mati seemed taken aback by the question, but quickly recovered her composure. ''I have my mother, coming up to 950 now. My father was a Turian, from about years ago. I have a sister the same age as me. Same father.'' A small smile formed on Mati's face, like she was in whatever memory she was thinking of. ''My mother used to go on about how we got our sense of humour from him, and our love of cooking.'' This time Seva was surprised, but soon formed a grin. 'You were liked cooking?'' ''Me and my sister would spend ages reading cookbooks with father, and trying to make our own.'' A tear rolled down her face, evidence that she could remember her father well enough. ''What happened to your sister?'' Seva asked trying to break the mood. Wrong move. Mati stifled a sob. It was the most emotion Seva had seen the Asari show. ''She's a commando on Thessia. She would never allow herself to be stationed anywhere else. She has been warned so many times, she's surprised they still keep her around. I think it's because she's such a good fighter.'' Mati wiped her eyes. ''What about you? Any family?'' At this Seva's eyes welled up. ''No.'' Mati put a comforting hand on her shoulder. ''What happened?'' ''I was always an only child. My mother was captured by slavers when they raided our fleet. They stopped us from returning fire by threatening the live ships. When they left, my mother…She sabotaged the engines, sent the slavers up in smoke. As for my father…'' She paused as her suit sucked her tears of her face and un-steamed her helmet. 'Heart attack. Did in minutes, with no-one around to help. I hated how he died. We live our entire lives inside these stupid suits to protect us from the outside world, and yet, they can't even protect us from ourselves.'' She wiped her eyes. ''We're here.''

The flotilla was a grand sight, an assortment of old ships. As they approached, the comms were hailed. Mati opened them. A young Quarian in a Yellow suit was on the other end. ''Please state your name and business.'' Seva walked over to the screen. 'Hello DeVaan.'' DeVaan for his part was a little surprise to see his old friend back, before responding, ''Hello Seva. What is your purpose here?'' ''I have a pilgrimage gift, but I need to see the Admiralty board.'' DeVaan scratched his chin thoughtfully. ''I can't get you to them in person, but I should be able to get to their quantum entanglers. Does your ship have one?'' ''Yes it does,'' Mati butted in, before allowing Seva to continue, ''put me through please.'' ''I'll get right on it.'' With that DeVaan closed the comm.

A few minutes later the 4 Admirals appeared. Koris spoke first. ''I apologise our 5th member cannot join us. She is… busy.'' Han'Gerrel cut him off. ''What is it you need to see us about? Last I checked, you give your gift to the captain, not the board.'' Seva breathed deeply, terrified. She looked to Mati for reassurance. Mati stood in a corner and simply nodded. Seva returned to the Admirals. ''I've got the gift on my Omni-tool. It's shield data, with a few faults. I had to change them so I didn't get into trouble, but nothing major. Xen butted in. ''and if you had given your captain of choice this, it would have been distributed. Why do you need us?'' Seva breathed deeply. Although they'd never directly met, she was terrified of Xen. She had the Aura of someone who was either a genius or insane. She resumed. ''I came to you because the ship I want to join is not part of the fleet.'' No reply. ''I wish to be part of this ship, the _Malthaka_. I will still serve the fleet, but..,'' ''we will talk privately,'' Shala Raan interrupted before the Admirals vanished. Seva let out a loud breath of relief, before looking at Mati. The Asari looked at her in disbelief before starting, ''Are you su-…'' ''Don't. Just don't.''

About 10 minutes later the Admirals were back. ''We have decided,'' Raan began, 'to allow you to go, if the captain of the ship allows it and promises to keep care of you. Any harm befalls you, they face the punishment. '' ''I accept.'' Mati moved into the communicator. ''Then our business is concluded.'' Xen stated, ending the conversation. Seva hugged Mati hard, before letting go. As she walked around her new home she couldn't help but think one thought looped: Where were Rakka and Garl?

Author's notes: That was long. Decided to talk some more about Seva. Didn't want to bring the Admirals in, but couldn't just let a Quarian gallivant off into the war now could I? Next chapter, back to the other two. REVIEW! PM! ANYTHING!


	10. Chapter 10

Author's notes: And we are back to Tuchanka with Rakka and Garl. And it's my decade chapter!

**Chapter 10**

**Rakka**

Rakka's eyes slowly opened his eyes. His vision was blurry, not helped by the bright Tuchanka sun shining in them. He coughed, and dust flew out and off his mouth. He sat up. Garl was nowhere to be seen. He looked around. There wasn't actually much to be seen. He got up. The air was dry at least, so he wasn't going to be catching Kepral's syndrome anytime soon. He spied a building in the distance, not much to look at. He turned behind him to check on the ship. Or what was left of it at least. The front and bottom were burned and torn beyond repair, but the rest of it had been… stolen.

Not all of it anyway. Just the easy to remove parts. And the seats. Whoever had been here had been quick, and much to his annoyance, left Rakka's body there. He gave himself a quick physical. He assumed a rib or two was broken, but ignorable. He had some blood on his head, but it was dry, and there were little signs of bumps or injuries. Without further ado, he walked towards the building.

It only took him about 10 minutes walking at a constant pace. It was a short building, in a domed shape, with holes in the side were either windows or had the sides blown up. There was a large rectangular entrance in the side. Checking his pistols was by his side, and giving his monomolecular claws a flick to make sure they worked, he entered.

It was a bar. There were a lot of Krogan sitting around tables drinking something Rakka was sure would probably kill a small animal. He noticed some steps at the far end. As he walked towards them he heard angry muttering and got a few wary glances. He ignored them and continued. As he went down the stairs, the confined bar opened into a larger area, with even more Krogan. As he approached the bar a large Krogan in purple armour that looked all too familiar rose from a table of similarly armoured Krogan and walked towards him. ''Rakka!'' Garl boomed putting his hand on Rakka's shoulders' 'How nice of you to join us!'' ''And how nice of you to leave me in the middle of nowhere. '' Rakka replied removing the hand. ''How close did we land to the co-ordinates? And what of that damn cruiser that tried killing us? And speaking of dead, what happened to the Turian?'' ''I'm right here.'' The Turian in question stood up, with a considerable scar across his ridge. ''We have landed very close to the co-ordinates in question, within viewing distance. And I cannot thank your Krogan friend for saving my life, from my injury, and these Krogan.'' The Turian extended a hand. ''Sedrak. Pleased to meet you.'' ''Rakka shook his hand. ''Rakka. Sorry about the shuttle.'' ''The Turian shrugged. ''Not my problem. Except on the matter of getting out of here.'' ''Especially with that cruiser lurking around.'' Rakka cursed. ''The plans are in a databank by an old surface to air cannon, maybe we can use that.'' Garl said to the side. Rakka looked at him. ''Get us a drink.''

Several minutes later they had their drinks and were making idle chatter while they thought of a plan. Garl was drinking something Rakka was pretty sure could melt steel, Sedrak had a light coloured liquid, and by the fact he was still living, was dextro-drinkable. Rakka looked at his drink. It was a bronze liquid. He lifted it to his lips and took a couple of deep gulps. Instantly he bent over backwards and began coughing while his eyes watered and his throat burned. He saw the crowd look at him and laugh. As best he good he looked at the bartender. ''Another. Make it a double.'' His voice was oddly hoarse. He sat back down. Garl was grinning, while Sedrak looked at his own drink like it might try to kill him as well. He looked at Rakka. ''How do you feel?'' ''Like my head was caught between a wall and a person whacking it with lemon wrapped around a gold brick.'' Trying to shift the conversation, he looked at Garl. ''Apparently every clan has a trait. What's yours?'' Garl looked at him. Behind them, the purple group got up and left, while a Krogan in tattered clothes brought over Rakka's drink. ''Clan Therrock are the best fighters. Give us a gun, we can use it. Left with our fists, we'll kill with them. When Wrex started his plan, Therrock was one of the first clans to join. Urdnot may be the best tacticians, but we're the toughest. If Urdnot is the body of the clans, then Therrock is the gun it uses.''

Rakka was busy sipping his drink and pondering this, when a large group of Krogan came up to the table, led by a particularly brutish looking one. He had one eye gone, and had had a skin graft of some kind due to the lump of scales that covered the hole. He had parts of his hump was a charred mess, and he stood as tall as Garl. As he approached Garl narrowed his eyes. ''What do you want Martik?'' he growled at the newcomer. Martik narrowed his eyes in return. ''I have come to talk about your choice of… company.'' Rakka looked at him. ''Well we're here aren't we?'' Martik ignored him. ''it's one thing to bring an alien here, but two… Have you no honour as a Krogan left in you?'' At this his Lackeys laughed. Garl rose from his seat, and looked at Martik dead in the eye. ''I have more honour than you ever will. Or did too much time as Kartiks whore make you forget that?'' At this Martik roared and tried to charge Garl, but Rakka stood up and threw his drink into his eyes. Martik let out a yell of pain, and stumbled back. ''Get them you fools!'' He shouted a few curse words as his men charged past him.

One of them charged Rakka who punched his snout before kicking him away before jumping into the crowd. He kicked one in the head before being thrown to the floor. He spun around kicking and punching in what he assumed to be a violent parody of a break-dance. He stopped when someone grabbed his coat collar, and threw him to one side. As he rolled himself up, he flicked out his claws. He looked at Garl and Sedrak. Garl had pounded 1 Krogan's face into mush, and was currently choking one who was down on his knees, and one had his head smashed in through the wall. Sedrak was doing his best to hold off two Krogan with his bare fists, but the Turian was not trained for hand to hand combat of this level. Rakka cursed and ran towards him as one landed a punch to his stomach forcing the Turian to bend over in pain. Rakka vaulted over one before slashing at the puncher. Puncher looked at him and charged. Rakka braced himself before stabbing the Krogan in the gut, carving through the rough scales like butter and, with help from his biotics, threw him over his shoulder.

As he did so the other one grabbed him by the skull and squeezed. Rakka fell to his knees and yelled in pain. Suddenly the pressure alleviated. Garl lifted the Krogan up and put his hand down his throat, before violently pulling. He was holding something that Rakka didn't want to know in his hand, and the Krogan fell over dead. Puncher was getting up, so Rakka put a foot on him while pointing a gun at his head, and the other gun at the group of Krogan still hungry for blood, while Garl pointed his claymore at them. ''I recommend you take a hike. Or…'' He pulled the trigger, shooting Puncher in the head. The Krogan looked at each other before walking off. Rakka turned to Garl, who was helping a winded Sedrak to his feet. ''You said you knew where the plans were. Let's go.''

Authors notes: That's where they've been. Next chapter I'll elaborate on Rakka's past, or maybe two chapters. One of those.

Review, comment la-di-da. You know the drill.

Also, Does anyone know how to draw? I want to see if anyone can draw the Malthaka. Anyone wants to have a go, PM me the link or picture.


	11. Chapter 11

Authors notes: Forgot to upload this. My bad.

**Chapter 11**

**Rakka**

''So,'' Rakka began as they looked at the ground to air cannons, ''we've walked 20 minutes and you wouldn't tell me where the plans were, for what purpose?''. ''Just to annoy you'' Garl said as they approached the cannons, before stopping. He carefully took out his shotgun. ''What is it?'' Sedrak hissed as he dropped down to hide himself, with no weapon, combat would probably kill him. ''I see a shuttle, but it doesn't have any clan markings I know on it.'' ''Rakka jogged passed him, moving as silent as possible. He got to the shuttle and gave a quick check, It was white. And it had an insignia on it… ''Guys! It's Cerberus!'' he ran back to them, finishing with a knee slide, drew out his pistols and flipped back onto his feet.

''Sedrak, can you fly that shuttle?'' surprisingly Sedrak looked offended. ''Give me a Thresher maw with wings, and I'll be doing combat rolls with it. Of course I can fly it.'' ''It didn't look like it on our last shuttle.'' Garl butted in. Sedrak glared at him. ''That was a combat situation with that kind of shuttle. You might have well cover yourself in concrete and swim through lead. It also doesn't help when _someone_,'' He glared at Garl, ''thinks knocking the best pilot present would be a good idea.''

''Can we sort this later please?'' Rakka growled moving forward. They followed. It was mostly quiet, save for the odd Pyjack. Rakka's Omni- tool began to beep. He looked at it. ''Okay the plans are just through he-'' He cut himself off before throwing himself and the others to the ground. He peeked around the corners. There were several troops in normal looking armour standing in a row, with two others in bulkier looking armour. There was also a slight figure dressed in thin armour with purple lining, and in front of them all a woman similar to the slight figure, but in a black lined armour was busy typing something in to the cannons keypad. Rakka turned to Garl and whispered what he had seen, before quickly asking, ''how come the Krogan haven't data mined this place?''

'''They don't know what it is, they just think it's a cannon. Hell I just thought it was as well.'' Rakka nodded in understanding before putting up 3 fingers and counted them down. They charged in. Garl shot the nearest trooper in the face, before slapping the neck one so hard, an audible crack came from his neck before reloading. Sedrak dived in and grabbed a gun and began giving covering fire. Rakka stood in the middle spinning, shooting and reloading, before the purple figure came up to him with a sword. They swung, with her emitting very feminine voice. Rakka ducked and grabbed the back of her head and punched, before breaking her wrist, and stabbed her through the eyes with his claws. He looked at Sedrak. ''Get the data!' ' The black figure was already leaving and calmly walking to her ship, a small frigate, as Sedrak started to go through the systems.

Rakka cursed and gave pursuit. He got the figure and swung a punch. She ducked and high kicked his face. He got knocked away, before running back and tried to break her neck. She kneed him in the gut and punched the back of head, forcing him to the ground. Rakka cursed. He had managed to take her helmet. He got a sharp knee to the face, which made him look up at the attacker.

He was guessing that she used to be beautiful by human standards, with her dark hair. However a scar from a bullet hole entering one cheek and out the other left her face a gooey mess pre-repair. Her face had not recovered, but her eyes were what freaked him out. They were pure blue, like ice. Just the pupils, no spread of this blue-ness, Rakka shook his head, back to the matters at hand. He unsheathed his claws and ran at her and swung rapidly, over, under, through. She ducked all of them. She drew her own sword and swung it multiple times at him, causing nicks where he couldn't block, and arm ache from the force of the blows when he did. She kicked his legs from under him, and proceeded to leave. Forcing himself to his feet, he ran at her. Before he covered half the distance, she turned and threw the sword. Rakka stopped and looked down. It was buried up to its hilt in his chest. The woman walked back up to him, and with obvious intent, yanked it out. The shock made Rakka gasped. He watched her walk away as everything grew darker and darker and darker.

**Garl**

Garl saw Rakka collapse, and the strange woman pull the sword out and leave him there. He turned to the Turian. ''Have you got the data!?'' ''Yes, just about'' Get Rakka and get him to the shuttle we saw earlier.'' Sedrak took one look at Rakka before running over. ''His pretty bad, I doubt that medi-gel will cover it, we need to get back to the citadel.'' Garl rolled his eyes. ''I know that! Now go!'' As Sedrak picked Rakka up with obvious strain and carried him like a large baby, Garl heard a large rumbling noise.

A tank came towards him. Well, he wished it was a tank. This was a Krogan tank. It had four layers on top of it, each fully mobile, with a tank barrels on each. A large machine gun stood atop it. To properly use this vehicle, you needed six people: four gunners, a machine gunner and a driver. It used technology similar to the Hanar, levitating to get around. As it approached, Garl looked at the ground to air cannon. He tried to fire it, but it hadn't been used in centuries. He started it up. It would take a while to fully start up, and as he looked at the tank, it was time he did not have. All 5 guns were aimed at him. He cursed and ran. The shockwaves of the explosions still threw him about 4 feet. He got up and got to cover. ''Come on Garl, get your shit together and think!'' He thought a bit more, until the tank blew a hole in the wall. Garl threw up a biotic wall in front of him, and ran towards the tank, as the machine gun started firing bullets. His walk wasn't going to last, so he pushed. The wall flew towards the tank and hit with enough force to make the tank look at the sky for a few seconds. In this time, Garl ran up to the tank, and jumped on. The machine gunner's last sensation was being crushed between a Krogan foot and a tank. Garl lifted the hatch, and jumped down. Before the soldiers could leave their seats, their brains were over the dashboard. Climbing out, Garl checked the cannon. It was ready. He fired, before running back to the shuttle. High up in space, the crew of the Cerberus cruiser barely had time to scream before the cannon tore them to shred.

On the shuttle, Sedrak had applied what medi-gel he could find, but Rakka's breath was still so rapid it looked like he was having a seizure. Garl looked at Sedrak. ''Get us out of here.'' He growled. Sedrak did so without question. As they took off, Garl Stayed next to Rakka. ''I swear, if you die, I will kill you!'' he muttered before going to sleep.

Author's notes: Not all missions will take this long I swear, It's just so I could introduce some things. Also, the generic stuff I type here.


	12. Chapter 12

Authors notes: Sorry for delays, GCS-E year, bogged down by a lot.

**Chapter 12**

**Rakka**

It was dark. And bright, so bright that Rakka had to shut his eyes, and then the darkness made him open them again. His chest was nothing but fire, but the worst of it was what he saw. It was her. Back when they first met on that night. She was a dark green. She looked at him smiling. He walked towards her, ignoring the light. She embraced him, and he hugged her. ''I'm so sorry'' He sobbed several times. She pushed him away. ''Sorry? It's because of YOU that I died, that Kaliah is what she is. Does your sorry fix THAT?'' As she spoke, her features contorted, her pale eyes glowing a hellish read, her mouth forming fangs. She lunged at him, her hands pierced through his chest, causing a million volts to run through his body. ''Letricsa!'' He screamed. His eyes, his real eyes snapped opened. He lunged forward. Two Turians wearing white uniforms tried to push him down. Rakka pushed them off. His head felt thick, and his chest burned. He threw up. He looked around. He staggered off, stumbling at times. He didn't know where he was going. Several members of security gently tried to lead him back. He punched the nearest. He ran as best he could. He was aware of a large shape coming towards him, but his vision was blurry and all these colours made his head hurt, and he wanted to sleep, and never wake up. The shape stopped in front of him. He fell to his knees. Security arrived to bring him back. The large shape shouted at them, and all the noise made Rakka want to be deaf from the pain. Blackness overtook him.

Rakka awoke groggy and confused. He was in a hospital bed, in white robes. He looked around. An Asari walked up to him holding a clipboard, flanked by a Krogan and a human who was wearing what appeared to be a military uniform. The Asari looked at her clipboard. ''You are Rakka yes?'' She looked at him smiling kindly. Rakka pulled himself up onto his elbows. ''Depend s who's asking'', his chest aching. ''Who are you lot?'' ''My name is Trisha, this,'' She gestured to the Krogan, ''Is Malka. He's here for my protection after your last, ah, outbreak.'' ''So that did happen huh?'' Rakka muttered, before replying ''and who's he?'', pointing at the human. '''That is Mr Fellows. He wishes to speak to you.'' 'Well I'm not speaking to him until I see the others.'' Rakka looked at the Asari. ''An Asari, a Quarian, a large Krogan, likes to be angry, and a Turian. And why am I even here?'' ''You will be allowed to see your companions shortly. As for you being here, you were impaled by a sword, pretty damn close to your heart. It was nothing short of a miracle you survived.'' The Military man answered. ''You should thank that Krogan's unorthodox methods. He applied so much pressure to the wound he broke 2 of your ribs. Thankfully most of that has healed, though I doubt that that scar will be going any time soon.'' Rakka looked down. There was a large white line across his chest. He looked back at Mr Fellows. ''Well Fellows, what do you want?'' ''I have an offer for you and your accomplices; I was just waiting for you to awake. Now that you have, I'll have your possessions returned to you.''

Shortly after, Rakka left the ward. As he was adjusting his coat, a small green figure tackled him so hard he almost fell down. Seva hugged him surprisingly hard. ''Nyeegh'' Rakka groaned. His scar flared up, and his ribs ached in protest. Seva let go. ''Sorry'' ''don't be mad at her,'' Garl commented from where he lent on the wall. ''She barely left your side until we forced her to. She's been visiting since they stopped operations. We all have actually. You've been talking to yourself. Who's Letricsa?''

Before Rakka could answer, Mr Fellows stepped out. ''Gentlemen. Ladies. I have a proposal for you. I am recruiting for an operation called the N7 operation. This war needs soldiers, and I'm trying to find the best for it.'' ''Correct me if I'm wrong,'' Mati butted in, ''But I thought N7 was human special operations. None of us are official military, or unless you hadn't noticed, human.'' ''I noticed. This is not an official N7 operation, it was made up by the masses that have joined, and we're letting them keep it for now.''

He turned to Rakka. ''We have checked the Tuchunkan security feeds. I'll send you the dossier on the woman who attacked you. Also we did some considerable digging. We have leads on the people who killed your wife.'' Rakka took a step back as if punched. Fellows turned to Mati. ''We are aware of your sisters presence on Thessia, and can give you regular updates on her condition.'' Mati glared at him through narrowed eyes. As Fellows turned to Seva, Garl interrupted, ''you're bribing us.'' It was a statement not a question. ''Not at all, we are merely offering… incentive.'' ''What do you want then?''

''To sign up.'' The four looked at each other. Rakka stepped forwards. ''I'll do it.'' ''Me too!' Seva piped in a bit too quickly. Rakka stared at her. ''No.'' ''What.'' ''This war is just starting. I almost died, what can you do that will stop that from happening to you?'' ''You can't stop me.'' ''I can!'' ''Well do it then!'' They were face to face, with Rakka looking down at the shorter Quarian. Garl pushed them apart gently. ''We're all going.'' He looked at Fellows. ''Do you have any work?'' ''As a matter of fact yes. There is a Salarian doctor working on pan-dimensional physics. His mind is best preserved. He is at this location. I recommend you hurry.'' Garl grunted. ''Let's get Sedrak and go. We've had too much drama on this station for one day.''

Authors notes: Sorry that was so long in waiting and short in length, Bogged down by GCSE's, and just wanted to get the point across.


	13. Chapter 13

Author's notes: Well it's been ages since the last chapter. Sorry about that. But now I'm writing it. And by the time you're reading it, it will have already been written. On with the show!

**Chapter 13**

**Rakka**

It had been several hours since they left port. The_ Malthaka _was large enough for everyone to get a spot, but even with a partly unshackled AI, the lack of proper crew meant everyone had to pull their weight. Sedrak had taken to being a pilot, Mati was doing assessments and cooking, Garl had locked himself in the armoury, with frequent visits to the main cannons. Seva was in constant charge of engines. And Rakka sat their felling like a dead weight. He helped out as much he could, but it all felt so unnecessary. He had taken to the med bay, reading the data pad that Fellows had given him

The woman's name was Lisa Kretle. She had been an N7 graduate, and within the same year of the passing, was discharged for anti-alien behaviour. Shortly after, she had been seen flagging Cerberus colours. They had accompanied a picture of her with the dossier. She would have been pretty by Human standards, but her for eyes. They were cold and unfeeling, and gave an air of cruelty about her. Rakka had gone through his memories, and looked through the fight.

Her mood in the fight had been a cross between indifferent and utter hatred. Maybe he could use that against her somehow. But looking at his performance in the fight, there were too many faults. He had let desperation get the better of him, and it almost killed him. He shook his head and got up. He decided to get something to eat.

Taking the elevator to the food court, he went to the cupboards. Mati was there, heating something. As Rakka was rummaging through supplies, she began calmly,

''I thought you was going to die.'' Rakka turned to look at her and gave her a cheery smile. ''Calm down, I'm not that easy to kill. Have a little faith.'' He took a packed food and sat down. Mati stopped cooking hers and sat opposite him. As they ate, she looked at him. 'You know, I always thought you were the best at what you do. You know, the whole assassinating thing.'' ''Me? No, not by a long shot. We're not meant to know about each other, but word gets around.'' He paused, going into a deep thought. ''Better than me… Well there's Krios for a start, Leglet of the north.'' His face soured. ''The Fenren .''

Mati held up a hand to stop him. ''Who are the…Fenren? Why do you hate them? Is that their actual name?''. Rakka looked her in the eye. ''If you want these questions answered, sit tight. It's going to be a bit of a story to put up with.''

''As you know, Rakhana used to teem with life. Industrialisation brought us down, due to the planets low resources. There was an old legend for these resources. It is 100 verses long, so I'll give you the quickie version. Millennia ago, There was a Drell, whose name must not be spoken. He yearned for the power of the gods. Desperately he tried to reason with the Gods, but they always said no, for the power of a God is not meant for mortals.

However, the nameless one was not put off. He thought for a hundred days. Eventually, he challenged the king of the Gods to a competition. He insulted the Kings pride, until the king in his fury agreed. They did many challenges, but through trickery, the nameless won. As his prize, he demanded to be made a God. And so it was. However, the nameless misused his power. He brought vengeance to his enemies; in his hunger he ate the minerals in the ground, so the planet was weak. In his thirst, he drank the ocean which is why the land was dry. The other gods demanded he return it back to the way it was, but he refused. The Gods left with no other choice, chained him to the centre of the planet, and made him feed the planet as it had fed him.

However the Nameless was not to be defeated this way. He chose 3 of his oldest friends three brothers, born in the same day, a rarity at the best of times, and a good omen, and granted to each of them one of his gifts. To the youngest, he gave his speed. The young Drell could pass the wind and was thankful. To the middle, he granted strength. Beneath the boy's hands, mountains were lifted and diamonds crushed to dust and was thankful. However to the eldest, his closest friend he granted 2 gifts. First was his mind. The elder could outwit geniuses and create puzzles even the brightest could not solve. The second was stealth. He became a master of shadows, hidden in plain sight. And he was thankful. However, with these gifts came a corrupted power. Over time, these Drell rejected the old gods, and only listened to the Nameless one. They named themselves Fenren, which means 'Warriors of vengeance.'' When they died, their power went into their children, and their children's children. And as they lasted, so did the evil of the Nameless one.''

''Well that's all well and good, but what about the actual Fenren?'' Mati asked after a few minutes silence. ''Yes yes, I'm getting to it.''.

Authors notes. Would write the next part now, but I'm lazy. It's a bit below average word-wise, but I'm getting there. I'm also probably do a spin-off crossover series once this is done.


	14. Chapter 14

**A galaxy at war chapter 14**

Authors notes: Well it's been a while. Circumstances have forced me away from this, but now I am back. Re-read the last chapter, you've probably forgotten it by now.

**Rakka**

''The actual Fenran are arguably deadlier than their story counterparts. They used to be assassins, but they grew bored. They sell themselves to whoever pays the most. There are 3 members: Sordid, the strong. Apparently killed someone by throwing a car at them. Feztax, the fast, once dodge a shot. From 2 metres. And their leader.'' At this Rakka's eyes glazed over. ''Abvil. There are no tales about him, only horror stories. They displayed these qualities, so the others named them Fenren as a joke. It's not a joke anymore.''

''Well, that's all well and good,'' Mati interrupted, ''but how does this have to do with that hatred?'' With that Rakka's eyes glazed over as he began to tell his tale.

**12 years prior**

Rakka rolled his neck. Long sleeps on ships did that to him. The shuttle landed at the port, and as the door opened, he was greeted by the hubbub of a thousand voices. He looked around. Surprisingly, neither Letricsa nor Kaliah was there. Still, if Kaliah was like she was last time he saw her, she was still asleep. He got off the shuttle, before hailing a cab. It would be good to see them again.

As the cab pulled up outside his house, a small doubled story building out in the middle of nowhere, surrounded by forest, Rakka paid his creds and opened the door. The clean air, so different from the city air he had been in the last few weeks, was a welcome change. His sense of calm was disrupted when he saw the front door, or what was left of it. It had been ripped clean off its hinges. He sprinted towards the door, and into the house. Furniture had been flipped, walls broken. There was blood. It led upstairs. 'Letricsa? KALIAH!?'' When there was no response, Rakka unsheathed his claws, and ran upstairs.

The same was with the upstairs, except there were various dents in the wall. A statue that Rakka had bought and an auction a couple of years prior was cleanly severed down the middle. The blood led up into the Attic. Rakka ran up, and was greeted by a terrible sight.

Kaliah, only 6 at the time was sobbing into her mother. Letricsa was slumped, barely breathing, one hand on her daughters head. Blood was covering the floor around her. Rakka ran to her and lifted her head. Her eyes were barely open. ''What happened? Who…?'' Rakka began, before a rough hand turned him around.

''Hello again.'' The large Drell grinned, before head-butting him. Spots appeared in front of Rakka's eyes. He was vaguely aware that he was being thrown. As he landed he rolled. He came up in a crouched position. ''Sordid. Where are the others you cu…'' He was cut off by a swift kick to the ribs. Although painful, he rolled up onto his 2 feet. ''Feztax. I guess forever was too long never to see you again.'' The small Drell giggled manically to himself, before slipping out two knives. ''We were the area, and decided to pop by hehehehe,'' The small Drells childlike voice still crept Rakka out. ''Yeah. Your wife wasn't very nice though. You should teach her some manners. Like, don't bleed like a pig when we cut her!'' Sordid's deep voice boomed, causing both him and Feztax to laugh.

Rakka growled and charged him. Sordid brought up his hand, to catch Rakka's first punch, but Rakka went low and hit him in the stomach, before throwing him over his shoulder. Feztax ran up to punch him, but Rakka just about crossed his arms to catch the shock of the punch. However, before he could recover, Feztax unleashed a flurry of blows at Rakka, throwing him off his feet, landing him next to Kaliah. She had been silent so far, but seeing him in this state caused her to scream. In an instant, Feztax was holding her knife at her throat. ''Shh, shh, I think you want to keep that tongue of yours, yes? Well then, shut it.'' He giggled as he threw her to the floor, next to Rakka. Rakka turned her to look at him. ''Climb out the window. Go ledge by ledge, like daddy showed you. Call a cab, say you want to go to the Citadel, and talk to Mellie. You remember Mellie? Tell her what happened. Take these chits and go.''

He slid them into her hand before rising. Sordid was standing over him, so he slashed his chest. The cut wasn't deep, but it hurt. Rakka followed by kicking him back, as Feztax ran at him, knives raised. Rakka caught the first blow on his claws, ducking the dwarf's second swing, before laying on his back, and kicked up, hitting the dwarfs chin. The dwarf staggered back, as Sordid threw him to one side, throwing a punch at Rakka. Rakka jumped to the side, as the punch went through the wall. A large chunk of wall followed.

Rakka rolled through his legs, and then kicked him out the hole. Feztax slashed, causing a thin line of blood to weep from Rakka's chest. Rakka responded, by a biotic throw, leaving the dwarf stunned. As he went to finish the job, another biotic throw threw Rakka against the wall.

Out of the shadows walked another Drell. He was a light blue colour. He stood taller than Feztax, but not as tall as Sordid. Yet he was different to the others. Though he looked mostly normal, he was different to the other two. He emitted _power_. He carried a large double-sided battle-axe on his back…

''Wait what is with you guys and carrying melee weapons? I'm pretty sure guns work just as well.'' Mati interrupted. ''Not all of us do it. Very rare actually, you'd be amazed how well it pays to have a close quarter's weapon that doesn't need reloading. Now can I continue?'' Rakka replied, irritation obvious on his face. ''Knock yourself out.''

He walked towards Rakka, lightly grinning. ''Rakka! It's been too long. How have you been?''. Rakka growled at him. ''Why? Why have you done this?''. Hasde looked taken aback. ''Why I'm offended. You'd think after so long you'd realise this is just business. Sorry about the rest of the house. I said no weapons, give your wife a chance…''

''How does three assassins against one civilian count as fair?'', Mati butted in again. ''She was an assassin as well as me. Not as good, but she still had some years under her belt. Now can I continue?'' Rakka replied, ''I promise this won't take long.''

''Still, Sordid, it always takes a while to get a message through to him. Hence the axe marks. Feztax on the other hand… well, you know how he loves his pointy objects. Don't worry, we were told just the wife. Hell, I even ordered a taxi when we saw you arrive for your daughter. Well, I did. You look angry. Was it something I said?''

Rakka yelled claws out and ran at Abvil, who promptly stepped backwards out of range before kicking Rakka back. Rakka growled and charged again, rolling around Abvil. As he slashed at his ankles, Abvil kicked his face. Pain flared up, and as blood began to leak, Abvil drew the axe. Rakka got up. He lunged towards Abvil. The other Drell raised the axe, but Rakka went low. He kicked the axe out of his hand. As Abvil rolled away, Rakka jumped towards him. As Abvil came out of his roll, Rakka cut downwards, aiming for his skull. Abvil was too quick however. This didn't stop Rakka. He turned, and slashed out the Blue's right eye. Abvil roared in pain, before kicking Rakka away. When Rakka looked back, he was gone.

He looked around for Abvil, but the blue Drell seemed to have disappeared. Suddenly a large weight hit him in the neck. The axe was pinning him to the wall, with barely enough room to breathe.

Calmly, Abvil walked up to him. Then he began his assault. Punch after punch, kick after kick, it all took its toll. Rakka lost consciousness. His last sight before blacking out was Letricsa slumped against a wall.

''When I woke up, I was in a hospital bed. Letricsa had died, and the police had no idea where the killers were. But I don't care. Because one day, I'm going to find them. And by any means, I will kill them.''

As he got to leave, he turned to the shocked Asari. ''I've seen you fight. You're good, but you're wasting your speed. I'll send you some techniques to send them.''. As he started he turned to Mati again. ''Have you seen anyone else? It's been quiet.'' As if on cue, Garl stepped in.

''I've been thinking, should I give the Quarian shooting lessons? I mean she's good, but there's always room you know…''

With that Mati's Omni tool began to beep. She activated it, and on the end was Mr Fellows.

''Gentlemen, ladies. I'm updating your mission. We recently have received a Cerberus distress call. They claim to have knowledge on what Cerberus is doing. There's quite a lot of Cerberus activity in the area though. As for the doctor, there is a large amount of Reaper activity near him. Considerably more I mean. Pick whomever you will, but I'm guessing things may get difficult for the second target.''

'Roger that sir. We'll get to it.'' Mati saluted before shutting her Omni tool. She presses it a few times. ''Sedrak get the engine running, we're going to expect some change of plans.''

Garl coughed. ''About that… He seemed depressed, and he was trying to drown his sorrows. In alcohol. His drunk.''. As he left, Mati stood dumbfounded. ''Well looks like someone else needs to drive.''

Okay, long time, no see. You probably forgot this was here. Well it is. Double choice: Who to get first, and who to drive? I have idea's for each, I just need you guys to PM me or something, just so I know which combo to pick.


	15. Chapter 15

**A galaxy at war chapter 15**

Generic disclaimer about how I don't own mass effect, that's biowares job. Onwards!

**Mati**

''Garl, get Seva. Her shooting lessons can wait. Tell her she's piloting.'' Mati turned to Rakka as the Krogan lumbered off. ''Get your gear, we're getting ourselves a doctor.''

Several minutes later, the Quarian arrived on the bridge. She looked around nervous. As she walked to the helm, she ran her hand lightly over the wall. Mati calmly waited for her arrival. She began to tap her foot, which quickly drew the Quarians attention. She jogged up to the helm, and after a brief pause gave a hasty salute. Mati smiled gently. ''Relax. I might be captain, but unless you hadn't noticed, we're not exactly military. Has Garl told you what's going to happen?''

Seva rubbed her hands anxiously. ''He told me that I'm going to pilot… this. Can I say, I'm not too confident with this? The_ Malthaka _is more… advanced than any shuttle I've flown and… '' Her words trailed off. Mati gently placed a hand on her shoulder. ''Listen, we're dropping in to a Reaper hotspot. We need the best of us fighting, and we need a pilot. With Sedrak wasted, we need to leave someone behind, the weakest fighter. No offence, but that's you. Unless you want to fight Reapers that badly?''

Seva stared at Mati for a few seconds, before sliding into the pilots' seat. Almost instantly, VACU popped up. ''Do not worry. I will assist you if necessary''. This however did not seem of any comfort, Mati guessed when Seva nearly jumped out of her seat. Mati gave her a reassuring pat on the shoulder.

Several hours had passed, and they were approaching the Salarians base. It was on a relatively normal garden planet. There was plenty of jungle and with it wildlife. As the shuttle neared the base, Mati could hear violent roars and grisly noises. Hopefully, the base was quieter. No such luck. A comm from the _Malthaka_ beeped in. Seva's helmet appeared on screen. ''Ummm, there's a lot of Reaper activity. I mean, a LOT. From what I'm reading, it's infantry. Actual Reapers seem pre-occupied with the colonies dotted around. Please hurry though, I don't know how well hidden I am.

Rakka stood up. ''You'll be fine, we be in and out before you know it''. He flashed the others a grin. Mati was still trying to figure the assassin out. Looking at his record, she had expected him to be some kind of… something. Probably ate puppies for breakfast. But actually meeting him… She shook her head.

Garl, piloting the shuttle, who had been silent thus far, cursed loudly, making Mati jump. The shuttle shook violently. ''We're taking heavy fire. Strap yourselves in, I'm going to clear the landing zone. This could get painful.

Mati pulled her harness down. Rakka, who had not sat down, was not so lucky. The shuttle crashed into the ground, inertial dampeners failing, and rolled. When they stopped, Rakka was bleeding from his head. Mati had to give him credit; he barely even staggered as the door opened. He drew his pistols, but lowered them. Mati unstrapped herself. She flared her biotics, and looked out the shuttle.

Everything was dead. Piles of cannibals and marauders lay on the floor, doing good impersonations of pizzas. Among them lay a dead brute, presumably the cause of the roll. Garl climbed out and surveyed his work. He then looked at the base, a large pyramid like structure. He unslung his shotgun and walked towards it. He surveyed the wall, before pressing a button. A screen popped up. A Salarian in a long white lab coat appeared on screen. ''Hmmmm. doesn't seem like Reapers. Rescue squad? Yes…. Fellows said about a squad''. He clicked his tongue thoughtfully. Then, a few button pushes, and the wall itself slid apart. Garl looked at the Mati and Rakka. ''Shall we?''

The lab was like a labyrinth, with twists and turns seemingly descending forever.. Power was evidently damaged. The three soldiers had been walking with their biotics out to light the way. There was a scrabbling noise, the only noise in the dark, and it was getting closer. They arrived in a large room, where the scrabbling became apparent. The Salarian was busy writing on a board, filled with symbols and equations Mati couldn't even begin to fathom, occasionally waving his Omni-tool at it. Mati walked forward to introduce herself as she approached, the doctor held out a hand. ''Must finish this. Won't take long. Saw your entrance. Loud. Hope you have back-up shuttle, own shuttle got destroyed by Ravager. Most inconvenient''. He ended with a few conclusive strokes, before turning. ''Let us be going''.

Mati pulled out her Omni-tool. She quickly gave pulled Seva up. The Quarian seem tobe pressing buttons, and adjusting things when she answered. ''Seva, we're out of shuttles, we need you to bring down the _Malthaka, _ASAP. Don't argue, we need this.'' She shut her Omni-tool. Almost as if on cue, the roof began to shake. Rakka drew his pistols, and looked at her, with a face that conveyed one message: This is going be tough.

They ran as a procession, Mati front, then Garl, then the Professor, then Rakka. As they saw the light of day, gunfire erupted. Rakka pushed passed the Doctor, vaulted over Garls hump, before running past Mati. He slid on the ground, shooting. A marauder came up to him, and tried to swipe at him. It never even hit. Rakka ducked before breaking its neck. Garl came next; he fired a shot at one cannibal, before punching clean through another's head armour. A husk jumped on him, slashing at his face. Without missing a beat, Garl opened his mouth, and crushed its head between his jaws. The two of them carved a hole in the Reaper forces, but more kept coming. Mati held out her left hand and focused. A biotic swirl formed around her arm, before taking the form of a sword. She ran forward, throwing enemies, cutting them down if they got too close. She punched the ground, yelling as loudly as she could. A shockwave of pure biotic energy emitted from her punch. There was a loud noise of Reaper forces clicks and the bones of Reaper forces tech and bones breaking from pure force.

The_ Malthaka _descended, just as another wave of Reaper forces landed. Garl escorted the Doctor to the ship, whilst Rakka provided cover. Mati tried to run, but after that much effort, could barely move. She settled into a light-hearted jog. Then what felt like a brick wall hitting her she went flying. As she tried to get up, the brute appeared over her. Its huge claw opened. Mati tried to squirm away, but pain shot through her body. The claw grabbed her arm, and in one brief second, crushed it. Mati screamed in pain. It twisted and her scream rose in pitch. Colours bounced in front of her eyes, and things started to turn black. Before she passed out, her last sight was of a large mound of flesh crushing the brutes head underfoot.

She wavered in and out of consciousness, to the worried chattering of her colleagues.

''Medi-gel won't cut it…''

''Verrik, hold her''

''…Shit, it's infected. Too fast…''

''She's failing…'''

''Not enough time…''

''We have to remove it now.''

And that's that chapter. Bogged down in stuff, next chapter will be sooner. Review in comments or PM. Untul next time.


	16. Chapter 16

**A galaxy at war chapter 16**

Authors notes: Here again. Been playing the first mass effect. Kinda let that get in the way of writing this. Onwards!

**Mati**

She tried moving her head. It felt like it had been injected with lead. Groggily she pushed herself up on her right arm. Her left arm ached like hell. She gave it a few clenches to try and soothe it. When that failed, she looked at it. Or, more appropriately, what was left of it. Instead of usual 4 fingers and thumb, there was nothing. There was a clean cut stump about three inches below her shoulder. She gave it an experimental movement in disbelief. The stump moved. The circular form of VACU popped up beside her.

''Hello Miss T'Dena. I see you have recovered. I'm sure there are multiple questions you wish answered. However, Mr Rakka and Mr Garl gave me various answers to tell you. First of all, Dr Verrik has been safely rescued. We are currently on route to the Cerberus SoS. I have also been told to not let you leave the Med-bay until this mission is over. However, you will be allowed to see visitors. Just ask and I will find them.''

Mati looked at the A.I., trying to think of what to say. Who was Verrik? Why couldn't she leave the med-bay? And why didn't she have a bloody arm?

''Find me Rakka first. He's got a LOT to explain.'' ''Of course.''

**Rakka**

''What the bloody hell were you thinking, getting drunk. Like, right now on a critical mission? You know, right in the middle of A FUCKING WAR!'' Rakka shouted at the Turian. He had just been through the removal of someone, a …friend? No. Colleague? Better. The moment he bumped into the Turian walking towards the cockpit, he felt like some answers were deserved. The two was standing eye to eye next to the airlock.

''Thanks to your brilliant decision, we had to have a girl, barely in her suit, pilot over a FUCKING WARZONE! YOU MAY HAVE NOTICED MY EMPHASISE ON 'WAR'. AS IN WE ALMOST FUCKING DIED. AND, IF YOU'RE KEEPING UP, SEVA DIDN'T KNOW WHERE TO GO. SHE HAD NO IDEA OF THE REAPER PROGRESS, WHERE THE HOSPITALS WERE, SO NOW MATI HAS NO ARM. EXPLAIN!''. Rakka hadn't meant to lose it like that, but sod it. This was not a good day for him. His scar was hurting, he had blood on his coat, and he had almost died.

The Turian hadn't blinked, listening in silent fury. ''A war? You don't think I know that there is a war on?''. He pulled out his Omni tool, and after a few gestures, bought up a picture of a beach, with glistening white buildings to the side of it. ''This is Fendor. A holiday resort. Dextro friendly beaches, top quality service, the works. Saved up 3 months' pay hauling and delivering, so I could get me and my family 2 weeks. My wife, Terifa, and my son Kelvik. However, circumstance dictated that I couldn't go, working. I told them to go without me. They needed the time I said. This is Fendor now. Someone managed to grab a picture on the way out.''

He sifted through some images on his Omni tool, before settling on a picture. Rakka could barely believe it was the same place. It was a different angle, but that wasn't it. The picture was blurry, taken in haste, but the shape of destroyers was unmistakable.

''Right out of nowhere. Fendor was a small world, early stages, population just over 2 million. Do you know how many people made it out?''. Rakka not taking his eyes of the picture shook his head. ''Three shuttles. 2 million people, and enough survivors you only need 10 pair of hands. 6, in your case.'' Rakka looked away from the picture into the Turians eyes. ''I'm so sorry. I know what it's like to lose a loved one.''. Sedrak was shaking. ''Have you ever lost a child? He was eight. Do you know what he wanted to be? He wanted to be a biotic. Always reading about biotic and eezo, no matter what I said. And now…''. He looked away. ''If you don't mind, I have a ship to pilot. This A.I can only get us so far in a straight line.''. He walked past Rakka, barging shoulders as he went. As if on cue, VACU popped up next to him. ''Hello Rakka. Mati would like to see you.'' ''Ah. This should be good.''

**Garl**

''No, no, no, you're holding it all wrong.'' Garl growled. He was with Seva down in the shuttle bay. They were currently using bottles from Sedrak's little booze up as target practise. The Krogan had to admire the Turian. He might be as useful as a vorcha's arse in a fight, but at least he held his alcohol. They had enough bottles to get through the trial and error session with the Quarian that was ''Shooting practise'' by loosest definition. He had managed to pry the Quarian away from her paper bricks long enough to get a shotgun in her hands. A katana, nothing fancy. It was not going well.

''You're holding it away from you, like it's spitting acid. Keep it close, the tech's going to stop it kicking back and breaking your mask, and it will give you more control.''. Nervously the Quarian re-adjusted. ''Better. I doubt you've had much practise, but you'll find a way that's comfortable for you. Now, actual practise. He held out one of the empty bottles, before placing it on the table. ''Hit that. Just line it up and pull.''. Almost instantly, the Quarian fired. Garl cursed and covered his face as his shield took the brunt of the force. ''Oh keelah, I'm so sorry!'' the smaller Quarian squealed, dropping the gun. Garl narrowed his eyes, before looking at the bottle, or what remained. Aside from hitting him, the shotgun had also shattered the glass. He sighed.

''Fine. I suppose you did what I said. Just… Don't make a habit of it out in the field. I doubt the others will be so forgiving when you bring their shields down in a combat situation.'' The green orb of the A.I appeared. The Quarian instantly had her gun pointed at the port where it was projecting. Garl pushed her gun downwards. ''Easy bull's-eye, it's just VACU. Probably not much of a comfort to you Quarians in hindsight… Just, you know try some more practise.''

As Seva warily turned around, Garl looked at the A.I, who was patiently waiting. ''Hello Mr Garl. Miss Mati has requested your presence.''. Garl breathed heavily and got in the elevator.

**Mati T'Dena **

She was getting bored. And bouncy. She bounced a few times, and felt like the world was bouncing back. She smiled, and bounced some more, just as Rakka and the Krogan sheepishly walked in. That bought the thought of a Krogan covered in wool, bleating in a field. The image made her giggle like a schoolgirl. The duo in front of her exchanged confused glances, before Garl stepped forward. ''You asked for us, I'm guessing you have some questions about… you know…'', he gestured towards the stump. Mati looked at him. ''I'm glad you remembered that for me. I'd almost forgotten , that you know, _I lost an arm_! What happened?''.

Rakka stepped forwards. ''Well first of all, a brute caught your arm. Shattered like a twig. Thankfully, Garl here caught It by surprise, a crushed it's head, with a little help from his biotics. We loaded you up. However, while we looked after you, Seva panicked. She didn't know where the nearest hospital was, and the citadel was too far. By the time we found a hospital a couple of jumps away that could salvage your arm, it was too late. We'd been applying a lot of medi-gel, probably why you feel weird, to stop the bleeding, but your arm… It got infected way to fast to be natural. But I digress. We came to the conclusion…Well it was Verrik's idea.''. He flicked out his claws. ''We cut it off 2 inches above the infected area, just in case. It was quick, these are mono-molecular, they cut through the bone like butter.''

''Verrik's off doing calculations right now, sod knows what for.'' Garl butted in. ''If you want to talk to him though...''.

He was cut off by Sedrak's voice over speakers. ''We're approaching the SoS. You guys might want to take a look at this.''

Author's notes:Well, I've written a chapter with not too much progression, but there you go. Already got a couple of spin-off stories in mind once I've done this.


	17. Chapter 17

**A galaxy at war chapter 17**

**Rakka**

As the he and the Krogan left the med-bay, Rakka broke the silence. ''Well. That went better than expected.''. They lapsed back into silence. As they got into the elevator, He turned to Garl. ''What do you think of the crew?''. Garl looked at him, before looking straight ahead again. ''There's four of us. 5 if you include the Turian, and 6 if you include the Salarian. We rarely have more than 3 combat savvy people in the field at once. Me and you, we can fight. The Asari lost her arm, but biotics are biotics. I'm worried about the Quarian. She left thinking that the worst she'd encounter would be some Batarians trying to make some quick creds, and we've dragged her into a war.''. He shook his head. ''If we're going to get through this war, we need more people. Too many empty seats on the shuttle.''

''What the shuttles you keep blowing up? Seriously, you need tom stop that. It's an expensive habit. Oh look, our floor.'' Rakka smirked as the elevator opened. They jogged up the bridge to the cockpit. Sedrak glanced at them. ''We've arrived, but looking at the radar… the _Malthaka _is kitted for combat, but cruisers, fighters… We be gunned down in seconds.'' ''What about stealth, can we do that?'' Rakka rubbed his chin thoughtfully. They'd gotten this far, they couldn't just turn back. ''I wish. Stealth tech at its best is rare. Only the Salarians and a few frigates have it. We might be able to get something second rate installed if we get back to the Citadel, but until then, our shuttles are stealthier than us.''

''How have they not spotted us?'' Garl butted in his normal, relatively blunt way. ''We're out of range. I've killed the engines, so they won't pick us up. Unless they look at us, with their eyes. Take a shuttle, and head straight there. Checking the readings, it's a pretty big fight down there.''

It had been 45 minutes' since that conversation. Garl was flying himself, Rakka and a nervous looking Seva to the battle site. Rakka was whistling a tune to himself, checking his pistols, and making sure his claws were unsheathing. He looked over at Seva. Her left leg was visibly shaking. He leaned over and put his hand on her shoulder. ''Trust me. I'm going to keep you safe even if it kills me.''. She snorted through her mask. ''Yeah, thanks. I'm sure it'll go far.''. Rakka kept his face stern. ''Yeah. Because you're young. You've got more life left than me. And… well, I've done things that I'm not proud. Truth be told, the galaxy will be better when people like me are one.

As Seva looked at her feet thinking, 2 loud banging's came from the cockpit. Rakka opened the door. ''What now? Just once I want things simple.'' ''You and me both. However, they've the area locked down, 360 degree coverage. The amount of firepower they have… even in the scenario that we got there, we'd be gunned down opening the door.'' ''Look at you, using big words like scenario. Alrighty then, any ideas?''. Garl paused and began tapping his head plate. ''Just one. 360 degree coverage… but not up. If we go high enough, one of us could jump out, and cause a distraction. They may have the firepower, but unless they're ready, it's not particularly useful. Now all we need is a volunteer.''. He leaned over and picked up a satchel and threw it at Rakka. ''Got this second hand on the Citadel. It's fairly out of date but it will work. So I've been told. Pull the chord and some cloth comes out. Oh and take these.''. He gave Rakka some goggles.

''You know, I'm not too comfortable about this!'' Rakka yelled. ''Sorry, I can't hear you over the wind. Don't leave the door open too long, you're letting the heat out,'' Garl was bellowing with laughter. Rakka looked out again. The ground was very far away. He could feel his breakfast making its way up the back of his throat. He swallowed and shut his eyes. He pulled the goggles over his eyes. ''Okay 1…2…'' He hesitated. ''3.'' He heard Seva say, before feeling a foot shape impact hit his buttocks. He fell.

Wind buffeted his face. His coat was billowing around him. And the base, which had looked so far away, was getting close worryingly fast. He waited, making estimates. Modern parachutes could make drops from most heights, but this thing…. He made a quick judgement, and then pulled the chord. He looked down. He was less than 100 metres above ground. Half a second later, he would have been paste. He shuddered. And the parachute snapped. As each chord snapped, Rakka was hurtling faster and faster. Hastily undoing the strap, he chose a spot he thought would, hopefully, would break his fall.

The centurion didn't have time to think, before Rakka fell on him shoulder first, like a green missile. As he got off his corpse, he looked around; he noticed various Cerberus troops staring. Well, at least that gave him time. He pulled out his pistols, shooting a trooper in the face. He kicked another one in the face and pulled out his Omni-tool. ''Garl, I've got some attention. Now, a little help please.''

A phantom ran towards him, and slashed. He sidestepped, and broke her arm over his knee, yanking the sword from her grip, and stabbing her with it. He slashed down a couple of troopers, as a loud metallic thump, came from behind him. As he turned, the ATLAS swung at his head. He ducked, as t lined up a shot. He slid In between its legs, and ran a short distance. As it turned, he turned 180 degrees, and ran towards it. As it lined up another shot, he grabbed onto its gun and pulled himself up. The arm began swaying from side to side as the driver began to try and shake him off. Keeping his balance, Rakka ran up, before giving a desperate jump, sword outstretched. The sword stabbed. With an audible gurgle, the cockpit opened and the driver fell out. Rakka climbed in and looked at the controls. 'Well, these don't look to tough. What does this do?''. Pressing a button on the helm, the mech shifted position, firing a rocket at an unfortunate nemesis. ''Well. This is going to be good.''. He pressed another button. The mech began firing its gun, killing 2 troopers. Rakka turned, just as a phantom took a shot at him. She then felt 2 tonnes of force snap her neck.

''Rakka you there? I'm bringing the shuttle in. You landed a little out from the base. We're heading there now, meet you there.'', Garls voice came through. ''Gotcha. Getting rid of the mech though. Cerberus isn't going to get it back.'' ''Killjoy.''. Rakka grinned as he slid out of the mech. He turned and went over to a legless trooper. Taking his grenade of his belt, he pulled the pin and through it in the exhaust port before turning around and walking away. As he felt the heat of the explosion, he decided a pair of shades was in order.

''Well then. Not much to look at it is it?'' Rakka tapped his foot. The base was a spherical building, emblazoned with the Cerberus logo. The door had a basic code lock. ''You know, its amazing Cerberus hasn't been brought down yet, despite the fact that, you know, they put the symbol on everything. Must create problems.'' Rakka noted as he absent mindedly tapped in a code, just for an error message to pop up. ''Seva, care to dispose of the lock?''. As the Quarian began to take apart the lock, Rakka looked at the scenery. It was alright, forest in the distance, flat land where they were. Pretty standard. What was interesting however was the black Cerberus shuttle headed towards them. He tilted his head. ''Garl! Care to do the honours?''. Garl gave a low chuckle, before flinging a powerful biotic orb at the shuttle. Upon contact, it exploded, sending the shuttle careening out of control. ''Good shot. Reminds me Ketoolka. I never did find out if they put they Turian back together.''. He turned to Seva. ''How is it going, I doubt those soldiers are dead.''. As if on cue, the door opened. Rakka raised an eyebrow at the emerald suited Quarian with her hands on hips. Shaking his head, he led the way in. There obviously had been a fight. Furniture had been thrown, there were bullet holes in the walls, and there were Cerberus corpses everywhere.

''Oh, that smells bad.'', Seva coughed out, pushing something on her Omni tool and helmet. Rakka pushed one of the bodies over. ''They've been dead for quite a while. More interestingly, what killed them in the first place?'', Rakka mused. ''Well, whatever it is, it's on the bottom floor, underground'' Garl pushed past, not taking his eyes off his Omni tool. ''Oh good. Elevators.'' Rakka muttered under his breath.

They had been going for about 5 minute's. When it finally stopped, it was all Rakka could do not to sprint out the door. Instead, he drew his pistols, and walked forwards cautiously. The power had been damaged down here. The lighting was non-existent. He turned on his torch before proceeding. He had gone about 20 steps, when something long and blue came out of the ground, wrapped itself around his leg, and pulled him down into the darkness.


	18. Chapter 18

**A galaxy at war chapter 18**

**Rakka**

He didn't fall very far, but the unexpectedness winded him. He rolled away. It was perfectly dark. He breathed deeply, and shut his eyes, letting his other senses take over. He could hear a faint buzz, then a whoosh and then he was thrown into a wall. He opened his eyes and shone his torch in the direction of the buzzing. There was a person in some sort of armour with the Cerberus logo emblazoned on the chest. In each hand… no wait, coming from each are were blue whips what dragged him down. Snarling he charged the figure. They gave a female sounding yell. And charged him. They… She? Definitely a she from the noises. She swung her whips, but Rakka slid, before using the momentum to slide, firing his guns. The her rolled out the way, before using her whips to yank his guns out of his hands. Without hesitation, he drew his claws. Giving that she was fighting him, her whips made it easy to see where she was. He charged. She swung her whips in a X shape. Rakka jumped over, and got ready to stab her, before another pair of whips grabbed him from behind.

Rakka fought, but his arms were pinned. He felt a gun be pressed against his head. And then the light flickered on. And behind the her, Garl had his claymore calmly held a centimetre away from her. ''I told Seva to find the power. She seems good at that. Now, unless you want me to find out what colour your friends brain is, let the Drell go. And drop the guns.''.

After a moment's pause, her dropped the gun, and the whips loosened. Without pause, Rakka spun and punched the guy, picked up her's gun and pointed it at holder's head. In his peripheral vision he saw Garl throw her to the ground face first. ''Okay. Names, reasons for SoS, and arguably most importantly, why did you try to kill us?''. He picked up holder by the throat, and with his biotics threw him into the wall hard enough to leave a dent. ''ANSWER ME!''

''Stop!''. Hers voice rang out. Garl pressed his foot down. ''I don't think you can really be making demands right now.'' Garl growled. ''Listen, it's a misunderstanding! We thought you were with Cerberus!''. Rakka and Garl exchanged glances. ''2 things that make us think that's considerable Varren shit, 1, do we look like Cerberus help? I.E., human? And B, you are the one with the Cerberus logo on your armour like a designer brand.''. ''We didn't have time to make judgement; we've been under pressure for 3 days.''. ''Well,'' Rakka said, after a short pause. ''Let's say I believe you, that hasn't answered my questions. Let's start with the easy one. You'll probably know this one. What are your names?''.

''I'm Molly, he's Jason. She nodded her head in the vague direction of the man in the wall. Rakka looked at him. He nodded vigorously. ''What's with the SoS. You said you had information.''. Molly nodded. ''2 pieces in fact. First Cerberus.. They're doing something with indoctrination. That's why we're leaving. We can't put up with it any more. Hell, we didn't even ask to be here. I used to be alliance, before Cerberus… did things to us. Jason used to be an engineer, Poor bastard; they ruined his voice box in the operations. He can't speak. They did things to us, with the whips and the like. They didn't have many supplies; we only had anaesthetic during the extra painful parts.''

''As much as I feel your figurative pain, what was the second bit of information?'' Rakka felt the need to change topic. ''We've been listening to Cerberus communications. There's a cure for the genophage in development.''. There was silence. Then Garl let out a roar and pinned her to the wall, arm pushing against her throat. ''Speak like that, and I might feel obliged to make you like your friend there. Mute.'' ''It's true! Cerberus is trying to stop it, I promise!'' ''Do you have any idea what that means! It would mean my people would have a future! If you're lying... Garl growled, letting the threat hang and dropped her, before giving Rakka a look that could only mean, we'll talk later.

''And, we have something to show you.'' Molly was slowly getting up, under the watch of Garls shotgun. ''Seva, start the shuttle. Now what have you got to show us.''

They walked through a door, with Garl pulling Jason out the wall and Rakka retrieving his pistols. As they went through, Rakka first noticed the kinetic shield. Then what it was guarding. Its armour resembled Molly and Jason's, but it was pure black instead of white. It was 9 feet tall with it is arms folded shoulder to shoulder, attached to some sort of alcove.

'Impressive isn't it.'' A voice rang out behind them. Lisa Kretle, the woman who Rakka remembered being the woman, who stabbed him on Tuchanka, walked towards them. Rakka aimed his pistols. She didn't have her helmet on, allowing him to see her smirk. ''Oh please no, don't kill me. In all seriousness, I was sent to get that. She pointed at the tall figure. ''So although I would enjoy killing you myself…'' She tapped her Omni-tool. The figure moved. As The Garl, Rakka and the whips looked at it, it lashed out. It swiped at Garl, throwing him like a ragdoll. The 2 whips prepared themselves, but 2 long orange whips fell from its wrists, and they began to fight. And Rakka was an idiot. He charged Lisa. He yelled, swinging. She ducked and punched his stomach. Using his weight over shoulders, he kneed her gut, and pushed her back, hoping to knock her over. She rolled away and drop kicked him, wright into the figures whips. He felt himself being thrown, before smacking his head on the wall. His last blurry sight before darkness overcame him was the figure following Lisa like dog.

Authors notes: 2 chapters in 1 day, finally making some process.


	19. Chapter 19

**A galaxy at war chapter 19**

**Rakka**

He was woken by something tapping on his forehead. He slowly opened his eyes, as the walking stick tapped his head again, before a familiar dace looked down at him. ''Hello Fellows.''. ''Ah, Rakka. Glad you survived. Before you ask, the doctor has already been secured.''. ''Because as we both know, that was my priority question.''. Rakka sat up. It was the same hospital as last time, but far more crowded. Personally, he was surprised that galactic extermination left so many survivors. ''From what Miss Seva told me, you were dragged a whole floor down. She had to drag all 4 of you out. Garl is already up, and Mati is undergoing treatment. Oh, before I forget, she told me to give these to you.''.

He handed over a pair of pistols, as well as a pair of claws. ''Amazing what Spectres can do eh. And, here,'', Fellows continued, pulling out a datapad. ''information on the Fenran. I'm sure you'll find it a fascinating read… oof''. Rakka looked away from the datapad. Garl was glaring at him. ''How many times are you going to get yer arse kicked before you stop fighting that bloody woman?''. Rakka rolled off the bed. ''Well, last I saw, you were getting somewhat beaten yourself.'' ''Blunt trauma I'm fine. Now about that talk…''.

Rakka stopped him, before looking Mr Fellows, who was dusting himself down. He was wearing a lime green suit this time. ''Wait, 4. Me, Garl, Mati wasn't there, Seva wasn't injured… The Cerberus. Ex Cerberus, whatever,'' He grabbed Fellows by the Lapels and pulled his face so close, the Alliance officers handlebar moustache made his nose itch. ''Where are they? I wasn't finished with them before they were so rudely interrupted.'' ''A floor below. Extensive surgery and autopsy. Apparently, they are… Abnormal. The doctors want to have a look, as well as do some scientists. If I may inquire, why do you ask?''

Rakka let go, before looking out the window. 1 floor wasn't much, but if they missed…, ''Garl, lower me down, then take an elevator down.'' ''Why?'' ''Oh, just a bit of fun.''. With that, he charged his biotics, before thrusting both palms forward, releasing all the energy, sending glass flying. He heard people behind him cry out in fear, with multiple mentions of C-sec. ''Okay, I need you to lower me with your biotics, then smash me through the window below.''

Without a pause Garl enveloped him in tingly blue energy, before thrusting out. As he went, Rakka noticed the sudden disappearance of Fellows. Then Garl let go of him. He started to fall, then was re-enveloped, just outside the window. ''Good drop, now chuck me through. C'mon, you've thrown me through plenty of windows before.'' ''I've noticed,'' Garl yelled back, as dryly as someone could yell. As he began to move, Rakka covered his head. He felt the glass smash, the biotic orb stop, and he rolled, before standing straight. He readjusted his coat sleeves before grabbing a nearby Turian. Where's the Cerberus people. In white armour, orange visors.''. The Turian shakily pointed behind him. As he turned, Rakka saw two sets of armour, visors open, chained down to hospital trollies. He gave them a slight pull. They didn't budge.''

''They weren't reacting to the sedatives. It took 5 times the normal human dose for them to be able to be restrained. 8 for them to sleep.'' The Turian stammered. Rakka tapped on the visor. It split into 4 equal pieces, pulling back. A human woman's face greeted him, sleeping and covered in what looked like Reaper tech. must be Molly. He heard the elevator open and heavy footsteps rapidly approaching. Garl came in, briefly glanced at the 2 sets of armour before looking at Rakka. ''C-sec's onto us. What do we do?'', ''Grab a trolley and get to the elevator.'' With that, Rakka grabbed Molly's trolley, and Garl grabbed Jason's, ignoring the protests of doctors. As they got in the elevator, Rakka grabbed the trolley and propped it vertically. The armour they wore barely weighed anything. Maybe he should get a set. As Garl did likewise, Rakka hit the button to the docks. Garl grinned at him. ''I almost wish I spent more time hanging around you than trying to kill you. I have to say, I've never stolen living people from a hospital before.''.

The doors opened, and Rakka pulled Molly's trolley down. ''Okay, the _Malthaka _is about 500 metres that-a-way. We sprint that, we'll be gone before C-sec knows.'' ''Well then let's go.'' Garl laughed throatily, before pushing Jason forward. They ran, just as a C-sec shuttle began closing in. Molly began to stir. ''Whaa-'', she began, before falling back. Rakka looked at her, and then past her. ''Ah crap, stairs!''. Rakka jumped on Molly's trolley, whereas Garl gave 1 last push sending Jason's trolley clean over the stairs, hitting the _Malthaka's_ doors. Rakka was not so lucky. The trolley tilted, and fell. Rakka fell, before continuing, picking up the trolley and opening the Malthaka. A confused Sedrak looked on as all 4 barrelled in. ''Alright,'' Rakka gasped pulling himself out of the heap. ''Let's go. We'll get out of here, and we'll wake these two up.

**Author's notes:** Bit short again, but this was just filling the space. Review, PM, I do not own Mass effect, etc, you know the drill.


	20. Chapter 20

Author's notes: Sorry this took so long, not the actual chapter, but Christ above I've been drowning in stuff, primarily exams. But fear no longer, I have returned. You can start playing the William tell overture or something here, for you know, dramatic effect

**A galaxy at war chapter 20.**

**Molly:**

Her head was aching. She gave a quick shake, and blinked, trying to remove the blurriness, and tried to move. Much to her dismay, she seemed to be bound to the chair, hands and legs. She turned her head to the right. She was just able to make out Jason, in a similar situation. They were in a small room, with a bright light being shined right in her eyes. Only then did she notice that her visor was open. She could see a couple of silhouettes behind the light. One had the unmistakable bulk of a Krogan, while the other was a lither figure which she took to be the Drell she had fought earlier. They appeared to be arguing, with the Drell currently talking.

''Listen, I've done interrogations before…let me finish! I know you have as well, but to be honest, I want them to survive. Wait, the woman's waking up.''. He turned to her. ''How much do you know? Of this genophage cure, of where you are, etc. And if we think you're lying, well then…'', He unsheathed what looked like claws. ''You're friend… the quiet one? We don't need him so much so get talking.''

Molly tried to stare him down, but with the light in her eyes, it just forced tears into her eyes. ''I remember… our fight, and then we were being pushed, then… nothing. As for the cure, well I can be more helpful there. We- me and Jason- were barely meat off the slab, but we had ears. And 3 words that kept coming up: Genophage. Cure. Shepard. I think you can put the pieces together. Now if I can ask a question, where are we?''.

The two aliens swapped a quick look, before the Krogan spoke. ''The_ Malthaka_. Where we have a crippled Spectre as captain, an unshackled AI, and we are currently waiting for a stealth system to be installed. Now, if you're wondering why I'm being so open, simple. Either A) You join the crew and we're just giving you an early induction course. Or B) we kill you, and what we told you. Now the captain's on her way. I'd be careful if I were you. She's still adapting to her… condition.''.

''That's a nice way to put it.''. An Asari pushed by, using her right arm to push the Drell to one side, while sliding the stump of her left through, careful not to touch either of her shipmates. She eyed up Molly and Jason. Despite the tough talk of the Krogan, and the fighting of the Drell, Molly was by far more scared of this haggard looking Asari. Her next sentence would decide their lives.

''Have they any combat potential?''. The question was made while looking at Molly, but it was clear that it was aimed at the Drell. After a few seconds pause he answered. ''Yes. They seem loyal enough also, but…''. He shook his head. ''I dunno. I say we keep 'em. They could prove useful. And hell, at least they make for a better viewing than Garls ugly face. No offence. 'The Krogan growled. ''As much as it pains me to say, they can fight. Like it or not Mati, we need every fighting hand right about now. We don't get to make happy little decisions like whether we get to kill them or not. I say we bring one to the next mission, to see how they are in full combat. Where's that goddam techjak? She's been working on that system for ages.''.

As if on cue, a small, green suited Quarian climbed out of a vent, covered in various fluids. She gave a brief glance at the tied up soldiers before looking up at the Asari. ''It's done. We're ready for take-off. What's happening to those two?''. The Asari nodded at the Drell, who in return nodded, before walking behind Molly, claws unsheathed. In one quick movement, he cut her bonds, and helped her up. ''I'm Rakka. We'll introduce you to the others later but for now…'', he pulled out his Omni-tool. ''Hey, Sedrak, did you get the mission Fellows sent us?. Good.'' He flashed a smile. It seems that we have a job to do. Molly, Jason, allow me to give you a tour of the ship. Consider it home for the duration of the war,''.

Author's notes: Bit short, but hopefully it reminds you I exist. Comment and Review. Thanks very muchsky.


	21. Chapter 21

**A galaxy at war chapter 21**

**Garl**

It had been a couple of hours since the interviews with the Cerberus. Garl had left to talk to the Turian. As he walked up the bridge he noted that Rakka was showing the two armoured Humans around the deck. Turning his back to them, he walked up behind Sedrak. '' Where we headed, I wasn't exactly given a memo.''. The Turian spun the chair round. ''Fellows sent us information. Apparently, we are headed to…'' He pushed his Omni-tool, a holographic map popped out. A distant system lit up. '' a small planet, military owned, Turian. Reapers have hit very hard. We're part of a relatively small force. We're to land, push through, and hold it down till the main bulk of the military arrives. We're to rendezvous with other ships, military, mercenary, volunteers etc. Now, we are about 2 hours. Get some rest.''. As Garl started to walk away, Sedrak called after him. ''Oh and Garl? Try to not kill anyone at the meet-up, yeah?''.

And now was the moment of truth. They had met with the force, multiple frigates and shuttles, and a couple of old cruisers, in case any actual Reapers showed up. All who were going planeside were to report and board an old Batarian cruiser, jagged and black. Rakka had been the first to cross, along with Molly, and followed by Mati. Rakka had turned to stopped her but she just glared at him and pushed pass. Garl approved, if she couldn't fight, then what was the point of her? Garl had been the last over. The ship was dark, and beaten, as was her captain. A Batarian of stocky build, with a scar running across his face, blinding his top right eye, and lower left eye. Most people on the ship were either Turian soldiers, or acclaimed mercenary bands, with blue suns, laughing and arming themselves in one corner, an eclipse combat drone here or there as the occasional Vorcha.

And it was clear from the moment Garl stepped on the ship, that their ragtag band of no pedigree was not a welcome sight. A cocky little bastard of a Human, equipped in blue sun armour walked right into Mati's face. He said something that Garl could not hear over the hubbub, with an insolent smile on his face. Whatever it was, Mati was not pleased. She balled up her fist, and pushed her palm on his chest, and let the biotic energy flow through, throwing him against one side of the ship.

His comrades were up in seconds, guns pointed at the group. At the same time, Rakka pulled his pistols out, Molly had her whips, and a submachine gun, Mati was building biotic energy, and Garl had his shotgun pointed at the suns.

''ENOUGH!''. The captain of the ship stormed forward, and forcefully pushed the gun out of the Blue suns captains hands. ''Dammit, save it for the Reapers. I won't have any of your men starting a fight on my ship. Then it's my fight too, and you won't like that.''. He then stood at apart from the crowd. ''Now, we obviously cannot fit all combatants on this ship, but enough. Now that we know which ships are going, here's the plan. Each ship has been given a target destination. Some of you may be working in pair's or three's depending on the intensity. How you drop your men off is up to you, whether you want to use shuttles or frigates, once you have cleared the area, we will rendezvous here, and await reinforcements.'' The map zoomed in on a tall building. Lots of windows, few entrances. If needs be, this could be defended floor by floor.

''Any questions?'' The Batarian looked around. ''Just two,'' Garl stood to his full height. ''How long till the Turians arrive?''. ''They have said 26 hours, without complications. And your second?'' ''What planet is it? Dextro, amino, what?'' ''Primarily dextro, though they have plenty of amino stores. If that is all, then let's go.''.

As Garl piloted the shuttle, he checked the data pad. Apparently they were working with Anor team to retake the location, though where they were he couldn't say The terrain was dry and rocky. Suddenly, they were being shot at by Ravager fire. He flew a bit further out before bringing them down behind a large formation of rocks. He turned to them. ''Ok, the terrain was pretty flat here, but I got us some cover. If we come out shooting, we'll have a good chance. The field has various rocks for cover, but aside from that, keep moving. There's a reason we were meant to have 2 teams. There are a lot of guys out there. Now. 3.2.1. Go, go go.''.

He opened the door. And the four of them ran out. Rakka took point, taking rapid precision shots with his pistols. A husk leapt at him, but Molly's whips pulled it down, before she fired her SMG at her foes. Mati hid behind some rocks, and began charging her biotic powers, before stepping out, holding a biotic shield out in front of her, taking shots from behind with her pistol. Garl ran out past all of them. He shot a Ravager, punched a hole clean through a cannibal's head and when one of the big ones tried to charge him, he flared his biotics, and used them to catch the charge, flip it and blow its head off. He turned to check the others. Molly was flinging enemy corpses around as projectiles; Rakka was like liquid, sliding between enemies, leaving a trail of corpses. And Mati… one of brutes was approaching her, but she just stared at it open mouthed, eyes wide and breathing heavily. Garl intercepted it, and shot its head off, before glowering at Mati, and running off. There was a horrific screech that stopped Garl in his tracks. He turned his head. A tall bony, female figure climbed over the remains of the Brute Garl had killed earlier. Rakka was closest. He ran towards her shooting, but his thermal clips ran out. Cursing he sheathed them, throwing biotic attacks as he went. The screamer held out her hand, nullifying the attacks. Rakka jumped, so as to punch her in the face, when she caught him out of the air with elongated, bony fingers.

Rakka struggled, and tried to squirm out, when she slid a long finger across his stab wound scar. Blood began to well as Rakka screamed in pain. Then, a shuttle came by, and fired multiple shots. One hit behind the banshee. The force killed her. Thankfully, her corpse shielded most of the force from Rakka, who was thrown through the air. Multiple blue suns dropped from the shuttle, and began firing at the remaining Reaper forces. Molly and Mati were already helping, when Garl returned to the action. They had fought off most of the forces when Garl ran and helped Rakka to his feet.

''You Anor team?'', Garl grunted out as he returned to the blue suns. ''That we are!'' One said in an upbeat voice. ''When we get to the building, we're going to have a chat.''.

When they got to the building, Rakka started the chat, via a punch to the captain's face. ''Where the hell were you. We might've died down there-hell I nearly did- and you were doing what exactly?''. However the captain, who was now unconscious, did not seem in any mood to respond. One of the privates spoke up. ''There were delays. We couldn't help it…''. He trailed off at the glare of the 3 aliens, and Molly's silence. Finally, Garl spoke up. ''We'll take the elevator. We're meeting on the top floor. Let's hold this down and wait.


End file.
